Scobee impressed with talented Airmen

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Jeff Walston
  • 506th Air Expeditionary Group Public Affairs
KIRKUK REGIONAL AIR BASE, Iraq --  Col. Richard Scobee will end his sixth deployment when he relinquishes command of the 506th Air Expeditionary Group to Col. John F. Costa, Jr., here, Oct. 30.

Shortly after the traditional passing of the flag, Colonel Scobee, who is a traditional reservist, will begin his journey back to Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., where he will resume command of the 944th Fighter Wing.

As with most Airmen on deployment there are certain things missed upon arrival as well as departure. It is no different for Colonel Scobee.

"Luke is home for me, so I miss being home," he said. "The wing there is very supportive. I also miss the flying. Being an F-16 pilot - six months without flying is tough duty."

But being away from home didn't stop him from being near some if his 944th family.

"I have my EOD, Security Forces and Civil Engineers here. We all deployed together, which is great."

No matter where the deployment, the circumstance or hardship, memories are always taken home.

"Of all the deployments I've been on, this has been the one that I most significantly noticed how talented our Airmen are," the colonel said. "I've seen them step up to the plate and accomplished more than I would have ever imagined while maintaining a good attitude. It's just phenomenal."

Upon finding out he was coming to Kirkuk, Colonel Scobee, as would any good commander, set goals for himself as well as the Airmen who would be under his charge.

"I have exceeded the goals that I'd set for myself here. Number one being security of the base," Colonel Scobee said. "We have been extremely successful in robusting our ability to monitor what goes on around the base and what we've done with the infrastructure of the gates and perimeter as well.

"The second is conducting safe flying operations here. We have nearly tripled the aircraft movements on base since I've been here and still continued to have safe flying operations," he said. "We have also re-surfaced one of our runways, so we have two structurally sound runways instead of just one.

"The third (goal) is supporting our on-base agencies. The testaments from the Army and our three-letter agencies have been absolute in that we've been successful in that mission as well. I'm very happy," said the colonel.

Goals aside, Colonel Scobee reflects on the major activities completed by Airmen on his watch.

"We are now using technology as our first line of defense to keep terrorists out, instead of putting Airmen in harm's way continuously.

"Another would be, the term we use, 'shrink and share.' Where we shrink our footprints on this base and we start to give back some of the old Iraqi air force infrastructure to the new Iraqi air force," he said.

As commander of a combined services base, Colonel Scobee has had the opportunity to work with many different organizations in order to accomplish his mission.

"I want everybody to feel like they are a part of what this base does. If I'm putting it here for the Air Force I want it here for our Soldiers and our civilians, said Colonel Scobee. "Just doing that has set us up for success in so many different things. All the things that we enable other people to do has been the key to getting along with all those people and the success here."

Success for the services and agencies on Kirkuk RAB translate into successes for the Iraqi people as well.

"Interaction with the Iraqis has been great. I am very impressed with their desire to take over the infrastructure and run their own militaries," said Colonel Scobee.

"Iraqis don't want to be dependent upon us for security. They want to be able to take that on for themselves. They are running down that track," he said.

As Airmen of the 506 AEG prepare to say farewell to one commander and welcome to another, Colonel Scobee makes ready to leave Kirkuk with the knowledge he has been profoundly changed by the Airmen and experiences of the past six months.

"The weight on my shoulders of the magnitude of my responsibilities as far as the safety and security of people on this base is much more significant than I would ever have imagined," said Colonel Scobee.

"I take everybody's safety and security so seriously. It is the one thing I lose a significant amount of sleep over," he said.

Watching the people injured and dying in our medical facilities is an unfortunate experience, the colonel said.

"I have seen all the blood of our young people I want to see," he said. "It is tough to see people with so much to offer and such great Americans suffer. It's tough."

For Colonel Scobee experiences at Kirkuk have enforced a few things that have always been important to him.

"I am so impressed and so proud of our Air Force and how much we as Airmen contribute to what's going on over here," said Colonel Scobee.

"If the American people knew the quality of their military and what they do over here, it would make them proud to be an American."