Command of Det. 1 changes hands

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Jarrod Grammel
  • 23d Wing Public Affairs
AVON PARK AIR FORCE TRAINING RANGE, Fla. --  U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Kevin Beeker assumed command of Detachment 1, 23d Fighter Group at Avon Park Air Force Training Range, Fla., as Col. Derek Oaks, 23d FG commander, presided over the ceremony Aug. 28.

Avon Park is located in central Florida in Polk and Highlands Counties. It encompasses more than 20,000 square miles of airspace and a Deployed Unit Complex located at MacDill Air Force Base, Fla.

"I look forward to leading down here at Avon Park Air Force Range," said Beeker "We are looking forward to expanding the mission and the usage of the range by aircraft and to being able to better incorporate advanced, realistic training for warfighters.

"Avon Park is an excellent training location," he added. "There are things here you can't do anywhere else on training ranges. ... Heavily utilized by special operations forces and local flying units, it's a unique and special place. In addition, there's much concern and interest in the environmental impact of the military training here, so we work very (hard) to maintain this special place and the endangered species that live here."

As command of Det. 1 changed hands, its organization also changed. Det. 1 will now be a part of the 23d Fighter Group as opposed to being directly assigned to the 23d Wing.

Oaks said that this change will make a cleaner chain of command and make it easier on the 23d Wing commander.

"As I read the history of Avon Park, familiarizing myself with it other than the times I've been down here, I was struck by the fact that Avon Park is kind of an advertisement for doing more with less in the Air Force," said Oaks. "You've always been a geographically separated unit with a parent organization somewhere else, you've always been undermanned and sometimes underfunded, and yet you've still been able to accomplish a mission that in many cases has been better than a full wing's. I really appreciate that."

Beeker and Oaks both said they are excited to expand Avon Park's mission and continue to provide pilots with valuable training in austere conditions.