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Pope pride on display

By Col. Timothy Zadalis, 43rd Airlift Wing Commander / Published January 26, 2007

Col. Timothy Zadalis, 43rd Airlift Wing Commander, greets Airmen as the exit an aircraft. More than 250 Airmen returned home from a four-month deployment to Afghanistan.
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Col. Timothy Zadalis, 43rd Airlift Wing Commander, greets Airmen as the exit an aircraft. More than 250 Airmen returned home from a four-month deployment to Afghanistan.

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POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. -- I would like to welcome Gen. Duncan McNabb, Commander Air Mobility Command, and his wife Linda, along with Chief Master Sgt. Joe Barron, AMC Command Chief. We are tremendously proud to host them, and are excited that they will see why Pope is such a fantastic place: our great people, our unique mission and our remarkable motivation.

I want to thank all the Pope personnel who put the time and the effort to really showcase these things to the McNabbs.

A week from Monday, a team from AMC will inspect us to ensure our compliance to instructions, policies and programs. Don't leave a stone unturned and make sure all your items are complied with. It's been a long road to prepare for the UCI. I have seen a tremendous amount of effort from a lot of organizations, some of which have been in on the weekends and putting in extra hours.

That dedication, while not unique to Pope, is uniquely evident in so many of our Airmen. That dedication was displayed last weekend when nearly the entire 43rd Comptroller Squadron came in over the weekend to assist 250 23rd Fighter Group Airmen redeploy.

They sacrificed so these GWOT warriors could quickly process through and spend time with their families. That speaks volumes as to why the Pope dedication to the mission is different from other wings. I want to welcome Col. Hank Santicola, 23rd FG Commander, and the 75th Fighter Squadron back to Pope.

During the inspection, show the inspectors your competence, responsiveness, positive attitude, aggressiveness, leadership, commitment to safety and pride, which are our hallmark.

Lastly, I would like to stress safety. We had two traffic accidents last weekend. In light of the fact that there have been significant changes to the weather, please take extra caution and care when on the roads.

Lastly, Be SAFE and ALWAYS be there for your WINGMAN.