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Pride and teamwork at McGuire

  • Published
  • By Col. Rick Martin
  • 305th Air Mobility Wing commander
McGUIRE AIR FORCE BASE, N.J. --  Last night Chief Master Sgt. Scott Kilbride, 305th Air Mobility Wing command chief, and I had the distinct honor to witness McGuire's Honor Guard perform at Air Mobility Command's Twelve Outstanding Airmen of the Year banquet at Scott AFB, Ill., hosted by Gen. Duncan J. McNabb, AMC commander. It was great to be there to witness the tremendous Airmen in AMC. Speaking of tremendous Airmen, I'm extremely proud of our honor guard as they were recently identified as the best honor guard in AMC. While many factors were considered in the decision to bestow that prestigious award on McGuire's Honor Guard, it occurred to me the two most important aspects were pride and teamwork. Our elite team is the second busiest in the Air Force and covers the highest number of square miles of any honor guard. While these are impressive facts, I believe it was their unique ability to come together from diverse backgrounds and specialties to bond as a team. Through hours of practice and preparation, they exuded pride in their team, their squadrons, and their service as they executed their duties over many miles, which led to their selection for this magnificent award. Congratulations to the honor guard on AMC's well-deserved award -- We are proud of you! 

Today, we have another significant milestone in pride and teamwork. Today marks our second installment of the "Elephant Walk" for Team McGuire. In a grand display of Air Force active-duty and Reserve, Navy, and 621st Contingency Response Wing teamwork, every aircraft on the flightline will depart, and every mission support group and maintenance vehicle will roll in a maximum-effort exercise of military capability. While some might say we do this simply because "we can," it goes much deeper than that. The Elephant Walk dates back to the days of General Tunner and 'The Hump' airlift, where his men sought to impress their commander with a 24-hour maximum effort surge to set records. To the surprise of General Tunner, their effort not only achieved the desired effect, but also bolstered morale. Although today we don't seek the opportunity to merely break records, we do practice this important exercise in preparation for a real-world event such as an impending natural disaster or response to our nations call for Rapid Global Mobility. I'll bet we see some increases in morale too! I look forward to seeing everyone working together today to make a safe and successful Elephant Walk. 

I would also like to take this opportunity to send best wishes to Col. Bill Spacy, 305th vice commander, as he deploys to Incirlik AB, Turkey as commander of the 385th Air Expeditionary Group. 

Finally, Chief Kilbride and I wish everyone a wonderful spring break -- be safe, make good decisions and return safely! Can Do!