30th Space Wing welcomes new commander
By 1st Lt. Angela Webb , 30th Space Wing Deputy Chief of Public Affairs
/ Published March 06, 2007
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- The men and women of Vandenberg, civic leaders and guests gathered at the Parade Grounds here to welcome a new 30th Space Wing commander during a Change of Command ceremony, March 5.
Col. Jack Weinstein relinquished command to Col. Stephen Tanous, formally the 21st Space Wing vice commander.
Maj. Gen. Willie Shelton, 14th Air Force commander, presided over the ceremony.
"One of the finest military traditions we have is the seamless passing of command from one military commander to another," said General Shelton. "We celebrate the achievements of the current commander and we also know the highly professional men and women of the 30th will carry on the tradition of excellence under the new commander."
With a formation of more than 200 Airmen from the wing's groups and tenant units, Colonel Jack Weinstein took the stage for his last salute as commander and said his good-byes to the wing he has led for the past 20 months.
During Col. Weinstein's command, he deployed over 800 Airmen in support of the Global War on Terror, supported Hurricane's Katrina and Rita, and conducted 18 successful launches, that included the first successful intercept of a ballistic missile in support of the missile defense mission, the final launch of the Titan IV and the first launch of the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle.
"I am profoundly grateful to you for giving me the honor to work with you as we flawlessly executed our launch, range and expeditionary missions," Colonel Weinstein said. "I will always remember this assignment, not as a simple stop in my career, but as the pinnacle of why I serve."
Colonel Weinstein will continue to serve as the director of Strategic Plans, Programs, Analyses, Assessment and Lessons Learned at Air Force Space Command Headquarters, Peterson AFB.
With a last, comes a first and with a first salute from the wing, Colonel Tanous took control of the 30th Space Wing.
His remarks to the wing spoke about the expectations and the how important the base is to the nation's security through advanced space power.
"You are the nation's experts in this mission and I am honored to be part of your team," said Colonel Tanous. "As your commander, my responsibility, and my promise to you, is to provide an environment that allows every member of this wing to succeed and an environment where our Air Force Core Values are at the heard of what we do everyday."