552nd ACW commander reflects on time at Tinker

Published June 21, 2012
By Brandice J. O'Brien
Tinker Public Affairs

TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- It can be said, Col. John Rauch will leave Tinker better than he found it. In his two-year tenure, the 552nd Air Control Wing achieved several impressive feats and the colonel gained the respect and approval of his staff, Airmen and partner organizations. When the 552nd ACW commander departs Tinker June 21 for Offutt Air Force Base, Neb., to become the 55th Wing commander, many said he will be missed.

As he reflected on his time here, Colonel Rauch said the feeling is mutual. During his command, he ensured "America's Wing's" integrity, history and legacy of excellence remained intact, and achieved the mission -- a goal he set out to do when he first arrived.

"I truly enjoyed being here at Tinker. Serving with the Airmen of America's Wing has really been a pleasure," said Colonel Rauch. "With 5,000 people spread out over five bases, I learned a lot -- balancing the mission demands versus the needs of the people, and maintaining that balance with the surging demand, the culture, long hours and serving in a large organization with partners across the base that aren't in our chain of command was very interesting."

Colonel Rauch said that some of the greatest challenges and accomplishments of his tenure occurred during the March 2011 through January 2012 high-operations tempo. In that period, the wing had several deployments, some of which had last-minute notice, and inspections peppered in between.

In March 2011, the wing was tasked with an unplanned deployment on a Saturday afternoon. Within 39 hours of the initial call, the first Airmen were deployed even though few details were known and the requirements changed at least once. Yet, the wing didn't miss a step and still prepared for a Unit Compliance Inspection.

When Airmen returned home from the Libyan operation, the maintenance group was tasked with a Logistics Compliance Assessment Program inspection.

"It was one of those things where we deployed a bunch of people unexpectedly and yet, everybody kept doing really well at Tinker. Meanwhile, we had control and reporting centers from other locations maintain high deployment tempo. They were home about eight months for every six months they were gone. They were excited to be going on the road to change the air control structure downrange over Iraq and Afghanistan while they were innovating to become more effective and become more efficient," Colonel Rauch said. "It was a marathon sprint."

But, his team said the colonel handled it with class and grace.

"Colonel Rauch was adept at balancing the wing's limited resources and focusing our efforts on the fundamentals of delivering combat command and control. He held the wing to high standards maintaining our readiness at home station and training our Airmen for today's fight," said Col. Thomas Engle, 552nd ACW vice commander. "The success the wing has achieved in the last two years is a great source of pride for our Airmen."

552nd ACW Command Chief Master Sgt. Eddie Compton agreed.

"Colonel Rauch struck the perfect balance between mission and people by enabling our organization's leaders - both officer and enlisted - the ability to lead their Airmen," he said. "His impact can be seen in the best sortie completion rate, promotion rates, awards received, and high individual morale. He is a leader this wing is honored to have as a commander."

Senior leaders from partnering organizations also said Colonel Rauch has been a phenomenal leader and his presence will be missed.

"I have been extremely impressed with the way Col. John Rauch has led the 552nd ACW. The wing has met every challenge and excelled," said Maj. Gen. Bruce Litchfield, Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center commander. "In addition, he has been a great Tinker teammate. Because of his proven leadership, Air Combat Command rewarded John with a very rare opportunity for back-to-back wing commander assignments. We wish John and Diane all the best in their new assignment at Offutt AFB."

Col. David Babyak, 3rd Combat Communications Group commander, said he has appreciated his relationship with Colonel Rauch and his team-player attitude.

"Col Rauch is a team player that constantly looks out for his fellow wingmen," the colonel said. "Over the last two years he has always been there to bounce ideas off and discuss future opportunities. From command post support to Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility operations, Colonel Rauch and the 552nd ACW set the standard of excellence."

Col. Steven Bleymaier, 72nd Air Base Wing and Tinker installation commander, agreed.
"John has been an outstanding teammate and friend of the 72nd ABW," said Colonel Bleymaier. "No matter the challenge, John's team-focused leadership style enabled the 552nd ACW and the 72nd ABW teams to always figure out how to get to 'yes.' We wish John and Diane all the best at Offutt AFB."