Airmen join with community to remember

Two A-10C Thunderbolt II's from the 76th Fighter Squadron at Moody Air Force Base, GA fly over the Valdosta courthouse Sept. 11, 2011. Airmen, and community members gathered in downtown Valdosta to remember those lost on Sept. 11, 2001.(U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Paul Francis)

by Airman 1st Class Nicholas Benroth
23rd Wing Public Affairs

9/12/2011 - MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. -- Hundreds gathered in downtown Valdosta, Ga. to show their support and patriotism as they looked back at that day, ten years ago and recounted the sorrow and bravery that occurred from Americans all across the country.

The ceremony, which was held at the historic Lowndes County Courthouse, began early in the morning of Sept. 11, 2011 as Airmen, police officers, first responders and community members of Valdosta and Lowndes County gathered to pay their respects and remember.

To start the ceremony the Valdosta State University mass choir sang three patriotic musical pieces, to include "God Bless America" and "America the Beautiful" after which Col. Scott Kindsvater, 93rd Air Ground Operations Wing commander took the podium.

"It's a privilege to be here today and a personnel honor to welcome you to this ceremony, I was in the Pentagon ten years ago and I will never forget that day," he said. "In the ashes ten years ago more than 3,000 people were dead or missing and countless more were devastated."

He went on to speak about what has changed in this country and what has stayed the same, like the nations purpose, community spirit and our idea of service.

After the speech, the crowd held a moment of silence that was accompanied by a local church bells ringing.

After the moment of silence, J.D. Rice Valdosta fire department chief led the group in prayer. "We were taught that prayer changes things, and when we pray we talk to God and God answers our prayers."

The Pledge of Allegiance followed the prayer sung by the St. John's Children's Choir. After which Col. Neil Robinson, 23rd Maintenance Group commander, took the microphone to provide his perspective.

"I don't want to read a speech this morning, I simply want to talk," said Robinson. "Talk to my fellow countrymen, all of us by whom we are connected and tied to a common heritage, a common core set of principles.

Robinson began his story in the A-Wing of the Pentagon where his office was located. As he began his workday, he would have no idea that only a little over a hundred yards from his office would be the impact sight of Flight 77.

His day started as most Americans had until the first plane hit the tower and news began to break. Their first thoughts were something had gone horribly wrong, that's when the second plane hit the other tower.

"When you witness something this magnifying you try to find some sense of normalcy," said Robinson. "I figured I would try to get back to work and get my mind off of what was going on."

Robinson called his wife and a few minutes after hanging up the phone with her, he heard a sound that he would never forget, the sound of Flight 77 crashing into the side of the building.

"The first thing out of my mind was that it was a construction accident because at the time they were renovating the west wedge, but it probably took half a second to figure out it wasn't a construction accident," said Robinson "I thought to myself, so this is what a truck bomb sounds like."

After the recount of his day at the Pentagon on Sept. 11 he began to talk about the patriotism and valor of all Americans and the military.

"You can rest assured that your American military is taking the fight to the enemy on his own home turf," said Robinson. "We do that on their turf so they can't come over here and do what they did ten years ago today."

"We fight them on their own turf, so you can freely gather here today without risk of a suicide bomb, without the risk of a roadside improvised explosive device," Robinson said. "We're taking the fight to the enemy. Not only do we have the 23rd Wing but the 93rd AGOW as well. When you look at what we do at Moody, our mission is simple, we save lives, we protect friendly forces and we kill the enemy."

Following Robinson's speech, the Valdosta fire department Pipe and Drum Corps played "Amazing Grace" with bagpipes and while wearing full Scottish Highland dress.

After the ending of the song two A-10C Thunderbolt II's from the 76th Fighter Squadron flew over the crowd to cheers and applause from the people below.

To wrap up the ceremony Don McArthur, an Air Force retiree performed "Taps" on a bugle to honor all those that have fallen. On Sept. 11, 2001, approximately 3,000 people died or went missing. Ten years later cities across the U.S. take time to honor these fallen with memorials and services.

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Hawgsmoke 2010 video

Released by 442nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs:

BOISE, Idaho -- While they didn't walk away with the Hawgsmoke 2010 trophy, members of the 442nd Fighter Wing's 303rd and 76th Fighter Squadrons did reap plenty of other rewards from the event held at Gowen Air National Guard Base here Oct. 13 to 16.

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476th Fighter Group prepares for first deployment

by Senior Airman Danielle Wolf
442nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs

9/20/2010 - WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. -- Twenty-five reservists from the wing's geographically-separated 476th Fighter Group at Moody Air Force Base, Ga., are scheduled to deploy in September along with their active-duty counterparts.

The Airmen, pilots and maintainers, will deploy to Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom to provide close air support for U.S. and International Security Assistance Force troops on the ground.

"We've been effective in working with the active-duty squadron's commander to integrate into the line numbers our folks are filling," said Col. Gregory Eckfeld, 476th FG commander.

The 476th FG stood up as an associate unit Feb. 1, 2009. Since then, the group has worked side-by-side with active-duty Airmen from the 23rd Wing.

"(This deployment) will make our relationship with the active duty that much stronger," Colonel Eckfeld said. "It's clear that there are differences, but when we deploy together, we're wearing the same uniform and supporting the same mission.

Along with the desire for total force integration, Colonel Eckfeld said the deploying members will also bring a variety of experience to the unit's first large-scale combat deployment.

"All of our pilots are currently A-10C-model instructor pilots," he said. "A lot of our pilots will be supervisors and lead missions during the deployment. They are all field-grade officers with thousands of hours of experience."

Maj. Dennis Ott, 76th Fighter Squadron A-10 Thunderbolt II pilot, will be part of the deployment package.

"We have a great working relationship with the active duty," he said. "And, we should have a pretty good setup. Other units, who have gone before us, should have worked out many of the kinks, allowing us to be more mission-effective."

Senior Master Sgt. Ron Clark is an air reserve technician with the 476th Maintenance Squadron and will be deploying with the group.

Sergeant Clark, who deployed with the 442nd Maintenance Group to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan in 2008, will deploy with the 476th FG as the specialist flight chief.

"(The 476th) has grown tremendously over the past year and a half, and the relationship with our active-duty counterparts has been pretty smooth," he said. "We have also shown that we can be put into leadership positions and be as effective as the active-duty Airmen."

Preparation

Members of the 476th FG spent several unit training assemblies preparing for the deployment, Colonel Eckfeld said.

"Our Airmen worked side-by-side with unit deployment managers and training managers to prepare for this," he said. "Our traditional reservists did focus-training in August to ensure a lot of the air expeditionary force training was met, including small-arms and chemical-warfare training. Active duty supported that training on the August drill and helped us finish up any loose ends."

In addition to the active-duty counterpart at Moody AFB, Colonel Eckfeld said the group's parent unit, the 442nd FW, provided vast support. He said Senior Master Sgt. Rodney Kennedy and Tech. Sgt. Shannon Kennedy, 442nd Logistics Readiness Squadron, have traveled to the separated unit to assist with deployment readiness and orders, as well as Senior Master Sgt. Shevaun McRoberts, also from the 442nd LRS, who assisted with clothing requirements for the deployment.

"(Chief Master Sgt. Allan Sturges, 442nd FW command chief) came down here on the August drill to give us insight on some areas of deployment we hadn't thought of," Colonel Eckfeld said. "He gave us some good ideas to help our deployers' families."

Chief Master Sgt. Tim Storms, formerly the 442nd Maintenance Squadron's first sergeant, is now part of the 476th FG as a traditional reservist. Colonel Eckfeld said the chief has been instrumental in ensuring the group had the funding to "go to war."

Manning

Of approximately 240 Airmen in the 476th FG, Colonel Eckfeld said more than 10 percent of the group volunteered for the deployment.

"We had additional volunteers, but were only able to fill the slots based on the active duty's requests," he said. "We have a good cadre to support these folks as well.

"We couldn't have prepared for this deployment without support from the 442nd FW and the 23rd Wing here at Moody," the colonel said. "A lot of people from the 476th will be picking up the load while the deployers are gone. My hat is off to the folks who have taken on additional manning - this is really a team effort."

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476th Fighter Group brings total-force integration to Flying Tigers

by Bo Joyner
Air Force Reserve Command Public Affairs

7/16/2009 - MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. -- Thanks to Total Force Integration, Air Force Reservists are now helping put the bite into the shark teeth-sporting A-10s of the 23rd Fighter Group at Moody Air Force Base, Ga. The 23rd FG is the home of the world-famous Flying Tigers, and the group's A-10C Thunderbolt IIs are the only Air Force aircraft authorized to feature the unique nose art.

Now, for the first time in the nearly 70-year history of the 23rd FG, Air Force Reserve pilots, maintainers and medical specialists are working alongside their active-duty Flying Tiger counterparts on a daily basis. Air Force Reserve Command's 476th FG recently stood up as a classic associate unit linked to the 23rd FG. The 476th FG is home to the 76th Fighter Squadron, 476th Maintenance Squadron and 476th Aerospace Medicine Flight.

While the 476th has officially existed since February, the group conducted a formal activation ceremony July 11 at Moody presided over by Col. Mark Clemons, commander of the 442nd Fighter Wing, which serves as the group's higher headquarters. The 442nd, based at Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo., oversees the 476th FG's administrative and mission-support needs not provided by Moody's host, active-duty wing.

The group works under its own command structure but integrates its operations with the 23rd Wing's 74th and 75th Fighter Squadrons and 23rd Maintenance Group. The Reservists bring a broad range of experience and provide continuity that increases the 23rd FG's overall operational capability. TFI is the Air Force's overall plan to capitalize on the strengths of both the active duty and Reserve by integrating regular and Reserve forces in day-to-day operations.

At Moody, TFI is quickly taking hold.

"We've come a long way since last spring when about four of us started building the 476th Fighter Group here," said Col. Greg Eckfeld, the 476th commander.

The group currently has approximately 115 people -- traditional Reservists, air reserve technicians and civilians. Eventually, the 476th will grow to about 230 traditional Reservists and full-timers, including 20 in the 76th FS, 160 in the 476th MXS and 23 in the medical flight. The remaining people will serve on the group staff.

"We've been focused on hiring, and we will continue to focus on hiring until we're fully manned," Colonel Eckfeld said. "We're bringing in qualified individuals with a lot of experience who are adding to the synergy we have going with the Flying Tigers."

Once hired, new members of the 476th FG are wasting no time blending in with their active-duty counterparts at Moody.

"We're integrated with the 23rd in training and operations, on the flight line, in the maintenance shops, and with the AEF (aerospace expeditionary force) rotations the Flying Tigers are going through," the colonel said. "We've already deployed two pilots for a 60-day rotation and have a crew chief deployed right now and another pilot and two more crew chiefs lined up to go."

"We'll be sending even more people in the next AEF cycle," said Chief Master Sgt. Stacy Walker, 476th MXS aircraft maintenance unit superintendent. "As our squadron grows, we'll be able to deploy more of our Reservists."

In the meantime, the Reservists helping maintain the A-10Cs at Moody are sharing their years of knowledge and experience with the Flying Tigers' active-duty maintainers.

"There are a lot of young active-duty troops here, and they lean heavily on us," Chief Walker said. "And their leadership encourages it. Our maintainers average 20 to 25 years of experience, so we have a lot to bring to the fight."

"The Reservists definitely bring a lot of experience and expertise with them," said Tech. Sgt. Travis Stroyick, a maintainer with the active-duty 23rd MXG. "When I have a master sergeant out there who's been working on A-10s for 20 years, I'm definitely going to use him to share his knowledge with my younger troops."

"From a flying standpoint, as the active-duty pilots come and go, having Reserve pilots here will give us a base of continuity to work from," said Capt. Brian Hatch, a Reserve pilot with the 76th FS. "Right now, we're the new ones, so we are relying heavily on the active duty to get us spun up. But, eventually, we'll be the ones counted on to provide the experience and continuity. In addition, we'll volunteer for deployments to lighten the load on the active-duty pilots so they don't have to go again and again. It takes a little bit of the burden off of them."

The 476th FG has reached initial operational capability status, and Colonel Eckfeld believes the group will be fully operational in a couple of years. He said the plan is for the group to launch and recover its first A-10 autonomously August 1.

They almost pulled that feat off during a modified flying operation in March.

"We recently recovered two cross-country jets, one piloted by a Reservist and the other by an active-duty member, where we relied on the active duty in a very limited manner," Chief Walker said. "We pulled it off primarily on our own."

The group reached another milestone during its March unit training assembly when the medical squadron conducted its first personal health assessments.

"The 476th Aerospace Medicine Flight is an extremely important part of our operation here, and it is almost fully manned," Colonel Eckfeld said.

In addition to several medical technician positions, the 476th AMDF includes flight surgeons, nurses and a dentist who monitor the group's medical readiness.

The colonel said the cooperation between the active duty and the Reserve has been phenomenal.

"We've received a very warm reception from the 23rd Fighter Group," he said.

"They're converting from the A- to the C-model, they had a UCI (unit compliance inspection) last summer, they have an ORI (operational readiness inspection) coming up in September, and they have AEF deployments on-going. Yet, they still have taken the time to aggressively work our integration. We're excited about being here at Moody and proud to be partners with the world-famous Flying Tigers."

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Related info:
Tigers with new stripes -- AFRC activates new associate A-10 unit at Moody AFB
476th Fighter Group (AFRC) video clip released

Tigers with new stripes -- AFRC activates new associate A-10 unit at Moody AFB

by Master Sgt. Bill Huntington
442nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs



On A-10C 79-0141, Tech. Sgt. Scott Lopez, an A-10 Thunderbolt II crew chief with the 476th Maintenance Squadron, reveals the name of A-10 pilot, Lt. Col. Bill James, in a special unit-activation ceremony held at Moody AB, Georgia, July 11, 2009. Colonel James is the commander of the newly activated 76th Fighter Squadron, part of an Air Force Reserve Command A-10 associate unit here. The parent unit of the 476th MXS, the also newly-formed 476th Fighter Group, fly's the 23rd Wing's aircraft in a program that is a partnership with the Regular Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Bill Huntington) Hi-res

7/11/2009 - MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. -- The Air Force's historic Flying Tigers officially came to the Air Force Reserve Command as the 476th Fighter Group was activated in a ceremony here, July 11.

The stand up of the 476th FG -- with its subordinate units, the 76th Fighter Squadron, the 476th Maintenance Squadron and the 476th Aerospace Medicine Flight -- is also historic as it officially brings Total Force Integration to Moody AFB with 476th Citizen Airmen flying and maintaining the 23rd Wing's A-10C Thunderbolt II aircraft in the Air Force's first A-10 fighter- associate unit partnership.

During the ceremony Col. Greg Eckfeld, 476th FG commander, spoke of the great distance the group has come since its start in 2008 as a detachment of the 442nd Fighter Wing, which is based at Whiteman AFB, Mo.

"A little more than a year ago I arrived at Moody, excited, but wondering how I, and a group of four other initial personnel , were going to grow this organization and if we could integrate Citizen Airmen from the Air Force Reserve with our active-duty counterparts," Colonel Eckfeld said. "I can say without question, we have been successful."

According to the colonel, this has been accomplished while supporting real-world, combat operations with pilots and crew chiefs deploying for Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

Colonel Eckfeld also thanked his people for all of their hard work in making it happen and emphasized his gratitude to Moody's host unit for their contributions in the effort to make TFI a reality.

"My future challenge and primary goals are, first, recruiting and then integrating traditional reservists and Air Reserve Technicians into the busy operations tempo of the 23rd Wing," Colonel Eckfeld said. "Our challenge is building integrated organizations that operate seamlessly with both active-duty personnel and reservists working side by side in this busy environment."

The event, presided over by Col. Mark Clemons, 442nd FW commander, followed the time-honored tradition of unfurling each unit's guidon flags, and introducing the new commanders. It included a special salute to the 476th FG and 76th FS commanders by their respective aircraft crew chiefs as commanders' names were revealed painted on the sides of two A-10s.

Underscoring the group's pioneering role in the Air Force, Colonel Clemons recounted the 76th Fighter Squadron's heritage from its start in China as the American Volunteer Group and subsequent organization as an official Army Air Forces squadron during World War II.

"Once again, the 76th is pioneering new ways of applying combat aerospace power," Colonel Clemons said of the 76th FS. "With its reincarnation as the 76th Fighter Squadron, this proud and storied unit will be the first-ever A-10 associate unit, flying a unique combat aircraft, which has been modified for the digital age - the A-10C."

Group members, standing in formation, rendered salutes to their new leaders as the ceremony progressed. Recognizing the significance of the event, some later expressed their pride, as well as a determination to become a TFI team player.

"We are here and we are ready to support the active-duty," said Master Sgt. Stacey Moore, 476th AMDF. "We are stepping forward in a new thing and we are going to make it work."



Col. Mark Clemons, 442nd Fighter Wing commander, and Col. Greg Eckfeld, 476th Fighter Group commander, reveal the newly-activated 476th FG's guidon flag in a special activation ceremony at Moody Air Force Base, Ga., July 11, 2009. The 476th FG, an Air Force Reserve Command A-10 Thunderbolt II unit will fly the 23rd Wing's -- Moody's host unit -- A-10s in a partnership with the Regular Air Force. The 442nd FW, based at Whiteman AFB, Mo., is the 476th FG's parent unit. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Bill Huntington) Hi-res



Col. Greg Eckfeld, 476th Fighter Group commander, addresses the newly-activated 476th FG. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Bill Huntington) Hi-res




Lt. Col. Stuart Moore, 76th Fighter Squadron director of operations, leads the assembled, newly-activated 476th Fighter Group in a salute to the Group's commander Col. Greg Eckfeld. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Bill Huntington) Hi-res

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Related info:
476th Fighter Group (AFRC) vido clip released