By Master Sgt. Mike R. Smith
I.G. Brown Training and Education Center
MCGHEE TYSON AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, Tenn. — Less than a month after taking charge of the U.S. Air National Guard’s primary learning center here, its Commander, Col. Kenneth Lozano, challenged faculty and staff to retailor their mission and vision statements.
“We want to take TEC to new heights, and developing a shared mission and vision is an important step in that,” Colonel Lozano said. Continue reading
Here’s another flashback article, in Guam in 2008, at a national disaster exercise. What I remember was that it was not on my list of news coverage, but I could not pass up these guys filling balloons with explosive gas. They were happy to tell me what they were up to but did tell me I had to stay back quite away with my camera and flash (afraid it would trigger something). I was happy to comply, and a bit nervous myself. That’s where I came up with the clever “KaBoom!” lead. I also had to hold off on publishing, until the after the event took place, so it did not spoil the surprise for the first responders.
GUAM – KaBOOM!
Exercise managers for the Vigilant Guard homeland security exercise added realism, Sept. 16, 2008, by blowing up balloons filled with explosive gas.
KaPOW!
They tested the balloons today. Tomorrow the noisemakers will prompt police swat teams to move in on a suspected fake terrorist hideout at a hotel. Along with phony blown up cars, it’s all been fabricated by the National Guard’s civilian exercise managers.
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U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Rachel Lewis led off a two-hour lesson July 9 on methods of instruction during the Instructor Certification Program at the Air National Guard’s primary education center located on McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base in East Tennessee.
“Our students put in a lot of hard work,” Sergeant Lewis said. “I love seeing the progression of those with or without training experience who learn that instructing is a whole different thing.”
The playing of The U.S. Air Force song is one of the few moments we have to sing out with gusto for the service. In basic training, we sang loud in cadence, not only to keep in step but with a feeling of teamwork that the Airman next to us bellowed out “Mama, Mama, Can’t You See” or “Everywhere We Go.” A squeaky or off-key voice was of little attention. The mindset was to build confidence, so the louder we sounded off in rhythm, the better the formation looked.
Construction of the I.G. Brown Training and Education Center’s new billeting office continued this week, with visible progress seen in some vertical steel structure raised, some initial concrete block laid, and from other work at the building site located on the eastern edge of the campus on McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base near Knoxville, Tennessee.
Base Civil Engineer Squadron officials said last fall that an adequately designed billeting office under Air Force standards is required to provide customer service to all personnel attending enlisted professional military education in-residence training programs, professional continuing education, and base unit training assemblies.
Construction cost is about $1.39 million.
United States Air Force Noncommissioned Officer Academy students in Class 19-6 were checking off the remaining blocks in their final days before graduation next Tuesday.
Nominees for the Chief Master Sergeant Paul H. Lankford Enlisted PME Center’s commandant award took a group photo with Chief Master Sgt. Steven Durrance, commandant, outside his office, today, June 21.
The Air National Guard’s Strategic Planning System has been developing priorities for about 13 years (2006), and while “strategy” is in its name, its perspective on matters of utmost significance relies on a shared dialog and input from the highest general to the most junior Airman, its leaders recently said.
LOUISVILLE, Tenn. — U.S. Air Force Col. Kenneth Lozano took command of the Air National Guard’s training and education center on McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base here as Airmen, family, and friends in attendance, and via live broadcast, watched and applauded May 31.
“We are extremely blessed in coming to this organization,” Colonel Lozano said about his family arriving for their new assignment. Continue reading
U.S. Air Force Airmen assigned to the I.G. Brown Training and Education Center campus operations office raised the nation’s state flags along Briscoe Drive here in East Tennessee this morning, May 30, 2019, in preparations for an Airman Leadership School graduation and a change-of-command ceremony.
Campus operations raise the flags for special events. They fold and store the flags on regular duty days, which helps increase their longevity. Continue reading
Looking back on this article I wrote 14 years ago (Wow!) – it was such a fun assignment, not to mention I got to meet Jay Rand, Olympic ski jumper who was such a nice guy. I genuinely miss these regular field assignments with New York’s Joint Force Headquarters and going across the state with its Soldiers and Airmen.
By Staff Sgt. Mike R. Smith, Guard Times Staff
LAKE PLACID, NY – Whiteface Mountain manager, Jay Rand, stands in a clearing at the base of Whiteface Mountain on a September morning looking with anticipation towards the eastern Adirondack skyline. Directly aside Rand is a ten-ton spool of cable so thick in diameter, and you could not wrap both hands around it. Roughly eight miles away and 3000 feet above him is the summit of Whiteface.
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