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EC commander visits 621 CRW

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Parker Gyokeres
  • 621st Contingency Response Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE McGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. --  Coming just a week after his command assumed administrative control, the commander of the U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Center visited the 621st Contingency Response Wing here March 28.

Maj. Gen. Bill Bender spent an entire day with the CRW to discuss administrative and transformation concerns faced by the specialized wing of approximately 650 mobility Airmen.
The EC assumed administrative control over the 621st and its sister wing, the 615th CRW at Travis Air Force Base, Calif., in ceremonies March 19 and 20, respectively. The moves were part of an Air Mobility Command initiative to align operational and support assets into distinct chains of command. Contingency response wings are essential to supporting the initial deployment of air mobility forces, and the CRW transfers to the EC reflect this, said Bender.

"The importance of your capability to Air Mobility Command is being recognized in the realignment," he said. "Administratively separating the CRWs from 18th Air Force is a step forward so we can offer greater focus and more specialized advocacy to the CR community."

When asked how he sees his duties as a new representative for the Air Force's contingency response mission, he sees two primary challenges--educating others about the capabilities of contingency response, and ensuring those forces are prepared and trained for an evolving set of challenges.

"Part of my job as the commander of the EC will be to continue to educate a lot of external agencies, other services and commanders to ensure that they first of all know what the CRW is, what you bring to the fight and what your capability is," he added. "The people who appreciate you the most are the ones that have worked with you in the past. The challenge that we face is letting people know that you're here and that if you just unleash us we are going to solve your problems for you."

"We will also be thinking strategically into the future -- what is the CR community going to need in terms of training and education as we look five years, 10 years, 15 years ahead," he continued.

Bender also highlighted the advantages of the CRW being aligned with the EC in regards to the training opportunites.

"We at the EC are asking; 'what are the requirements, where are the likely next missions going to be?' said Bender. "We will be able to work more closely with the CRW on things like exercise opportunities and refined training that will help the CR community be prepared for tomorrow's challenges."

The CRW's mission statement highlights its ability to handle the unexpected, declaring its ability to 'deploy versatile mobility Airmen, disciplined to solve problems in complex environments.' This message resonated with Bender during his visit.

"The wing did a fantastic job of talking about various challenges - no problems - but challenges that you face in the areas of resources, manpower, some of the support requirements that you might have," concluded Bender. "We talked about issues that are important to making this the most effective relationship and the most respectable organization that it can be. So we had a great day; I was really impressed."