HURLBURT FIELD, Fla. -- Hundreds of Carpetbaggers from the 492nd Special Operations Wing welcomed their new wing commander during a change of command ceremony May 6.
Lt. Gen. Brad Webb, commander of the Air Force Special Operations Command, presided over the ceremony as Col. Andrew Jett took command of the wing from Col. Todd A. Fogle.
Webb spoke about the original World War II Carpetbaggers – intrepid Americans who developed innovative solutions to assist the French resistance in preparation for the D-Day invasion.
“These Carpetbaggers were pathfinders,” said Webb. “They found a way to get the mission done.”
Seventy-five years later, the National Defense Strategy has circled back toward great power competition.
“Great power competition is back and it will take pathfinders like the Air Commandos and Carpetbaggers here to maintain our competitive advantage,” said Webb. “I have full faith and know that there is a way, and you will find it.”
Webb noted the diversity of the missions of the 492nd SOW as being rather complex, and in many ways, the actual vanguard of the top priorities of the Secretary of the Air Force.
“Restoring readiness through the 492nd [Special Operations] Training Group, modernizing through the 18th Flight Test Squadron, driving innovation through the 492nd Special Operations Advanced Capabilities Squadron, developing joint leaders at U.S. Air Force Special Operations School, strengthening allies through the 492nd Special Operations Group through the Combat Aviation Advisors and Nonstandard Aviation Communities,” said Webb. “The Carpetbaggers are exactly who the Secretary of the Air Force wants the rest of the Air Force to be.”
As the new 492nd SOW commander, Jett addressed his formation.
“To the Carpetbaggers of the 492nd SOW, we are a unique wing inside of a unique command,” said Jett. “Turning Airmen into Air Commandos; sending out small teams of Operational Aviation Detachments to train our international partners so that we can keep the fight far from our shores; hiding in plain sight as we deliver combat effects to the enemy in the seams and on the fringes and all the support that goes with that: these are no small charges and I am humbled by the opportunity to serve you and your families, put me to work.”