LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. –
Lt. Col. Alan Edwards assumed command of the 1st Operations Support Squadron in a ceremony April 15 in the 27th Fighter Squadron hangar.
Col. Richard Boutwell, 1st Operations Group commander, presided over the ceremony, in which Colonel Edwards succeeded Lt. Col. Thomas Shank as commander of the unit.
Colonel Boutwell thanked Colonel Shank for the myriad of achievements the squadron earned under his watch, including several successful deployments and exercises, management of Langley and Fort Eustis' Felker Army Airfield and the "Excellent" rating in the recent Operational Readiness Inspection.
"I'll make every effort to build upon the extraordinary foundation in this squadron and take care of the men and women in my command," Colonel Edwards said, after receiving the guidon. "It's an absolute honor to lead the men and women of the Swordsmen."
Colonel Edwards is a 1994 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., and command pilot with more than 2,500 hours in the F-15E Strike Eagle and F-22 Raptor. He most recently served as the 27 FS director of operations.
The 1 OSS is responsible for all facets of airfield operations, air traffic control, weather, aircrew life support and training, intelligence analysis and support, weapons and tactics training, 1st Fighter Wing battle staff operations, airspace scheduling, range ops and wing flying hour programs for Joint Base Langley-Eustis.