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920th Rescue Wing welcomes new leader

By Master Sgt. Bryan Ripple, 920th Rescue Wing Public Affairs / Published May 03, 2010

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PATRICK AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- The men and women of Air Force Reserve Command's only Combat Search and Rescue Wing welcomed a new commander May 2 during a wing change of command ceremony held inside Hangar 750 at Patrick Air Force Base, Fla.

Colonel Robert L. "BDU" Dunn assumed command of the 920th Rescue Wing from Colonel Steven "Wallstreet" Kirkpatrick at the ceremony attended by hundreds of Airmen from the wing, family members and friends, leaders of the 45th Space Wing and other local military organizations.

Maj. Gen. Frank Padilla, commander of 10th Air Force, presided over the ceremony and said he has the utmost confidence in Colonel Dunn to lead the Wing with any challenges that might lie ahead.

After assuming command, Colonel Dunn said "Commanding a rescue wing is a dream come true to me. Commanding this rescue wing -- the rescue wing I consider the best in the world -- there could not be a greater honor for me."

During the ceremony both Colonel Kirkpatrick and Colonel Dunn received the Legion of Merit medal from Maj. Gen. Padilla.

Colonel Dunn was previously the Commander of the 943rd Rescue Group, Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz., which is a geographically separated unit of the 920th RQW and has spent 20 years in the Air Force rescue business in various capacities. He received his commission through the Reserve Officer Training Corps at Kent State University, Ohio in 1978 with a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering Technology. He spent 10 years on active duty as a pilot and entered the Air Force Reserve in 1990 and has since seen worldwide duty in Air Force Systems Command, Pacific Air Forces, Tactical Air Command, Air Combat Command, Air Force Special Operations Command and Headquarters Tenth Air Force as a unit training officer, instructor pilot, flight examiner, flight commander, operations officer and director of safety. He is a command pilot with more than 5,500 hours in the T-37, T-38A/B, A-10A, UH-1H, HH-3E and HH-60G.

As the 920th RQW Commander, Colonel Dunn provides leadership, management and supervision and is responsible for the organization, training and equipping of the wing.

After assuming command from Colonel Kirkpatrick, Colonel Dunn told the Airmen of the 920th and Maj. Gen. Padilla that he was grateful and humbled by the opportunity to lead the Wing. In an interview after the ceremony, Colonel Dunn said he would spend the next few months reviewing his new personnel and facilities, and then set a series of goals.

"If I take care of the people, the people will take care of the mission," he said.

The 920th RQW is comprised of 1,500 dedicated Citizen Airmen and is the most called upon unit in the Air Force Reserve. The 920th routinely averages 50-200 service members deployed in support of overseas contingency operations.