Commander delivers news

  • Published
  • By Thomas Schmidt
  • 927th Air Refueling Wing
SELFRIDGE AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, Mich. --  Single-digit temperatures and howling, blustery 50 mile-per-hour winds driving wind chill readings well below zero, is not a typical Michigan winter but one which recent visitors will remember for some time. 

Traveling cross country leaving behind the sunny, warm climate of southern California to observe the progress of the wing' s relocation to MacDill AFB, Florida, Maj. Gen. Robert Duignan, Fourth Air Force commander, and his leadership team encountered an unusual winter reception when they touched down Jan. 29 in the Great Lakes State after visiting the 4AF/Det 1 temporary digs at MacDill. 

The general's visit was highlighted with a commander's call to bring everyone up to date on the relocation status of the wing. Most notable is the earlier than anticipated stand up of the wing at MacDill rather than the previously anticipated July timeframe. Additionally, transfer of tankers to the Air National Guard will be considerably accelerated and will depend upon the Guard's readiness to accept the aircraft. The remainder of the relocation effort is expected to remain on schedule. 

"We have a long and exciting future and I'm thrilled about us being able to do this," General Duignan said, referring to the new Total Force relationship between the 927th Air Refueling wing and the 6 Air Mobility Wing at MacDill AFB, Fla. "There have been a lot of people who have worked very hard for this to come about and we are ready for this relationship to begin." 

"There are processes in place for everything at MacDill to take care of our personnel and they are ready for us to come here and start flying operations. It will be here as at other places where you won't be able to tell the difference between the forces whether they are active duty or reservists. Everyone will function toward the same level of mission accomplishment." 

On the question of the BRAC process and movement of personnel currently assigned in the 927th (at Selfridge) the general said, "There is a long and proud history in the 927th and the thing people should be aware of is that we didn't target you, BRAC did. The consensus across the board is our key focus - in every case to take care of the people to best of our ability. I can guarantee that everyone who wants a job will have one whether that's with the Reserve, Guard or someone else. Our goal is to do this as quickly as possible, but we don't want to show up in Tampa and they not (be) ready for us and our folks end up in a tent in the parking lot." 

As with any major change people should expect changes to occur during the course of the transition. It is wing leadership's goal to keep everyone accurately informed in a timely and truthful manner.