Command ceremony – USAFE activates new wing at Ramstein Air Base

***image1***The activation of a new wing here on 25 May will enhance USAFE’s ability to provide support to many geographically separated units (GSUs) throughout the command.
The activation of the 38th Combat Support Wing at Ramstein AB will not affect the operations of the 435th Air Base Wing or the 86th Airlift Wing here nor will it result in a significant increase in the number of base personnel.
Operating independently from the other two wings at Ramstein, the 38th CSW will assume responsibility for the oversight of more than a dozen GSUs located throughout Europe that are currently supported by United States Air Forces in Europe headquarters and USAFE’s two numbered Air Forces.
The 38th CSW will be commanded by Col. Richard B. Weathers, who is currently the USAFE Comptroller here.
The activation of the new wing will provide USAFE with a wing of functional experts dedicated to the support of geographically separated units, according to USAFE commander Gen. Robert H. “Doc” Foglesong. In addition, the organization of the GSUs under a new wing will normalize the reporting chain for all USAFE GSUs by having groups report to a wing and then to the numbered Air Force.
“The new wing makes sense,” said Foglesong. “It streamlines the GSU support functions and places them under one wing commander. This will provide an advocate to address support related issues and a structure to focus on solutions for problems that affect geographically separated units.”
“There will be no change to the way our GSUs operate day-to-day. It’s just a smarter way of conducting business and serving our customers better,” he added.
The lineage of the 38th Combat Support Wing can be traced back to the 38th Tactical Missile Wing of the 1960’s which was composed of launch and maintenance squadrons at Sembach, Hahn, and Bitburg Air Bases in Germany. (Courtesy of USAFE News Service)