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***image1***Brig. Gen. Rosanne Bailey relinquished command of the 435th Air Base Wing to Col. Kurtis D. Lohide during a change of command ceremony here in Hangar One Thursday.
Colonel Lohide comes for his second tour in Germany from Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., where he served as the 99th Mission Support Group commander for nearly 3,000 people under seven squadrons.
In his new job, he commands the wing that provides rapid mobility and agile combat support for the servicemembers of the KMC.
“The members of the 435th (ABW) are anxious to show Colonel Lohide we’re absolutely dedicated to ‘Swift and Sure’ expeditionary combat support,” said Col. Bob Otto, 435th ABW vice commander.
In 1990, Colonel Lohide made his first European tour. He flew as an F-4 navigator with the 81st Tactical Fighter Wing at Spangdahlem Air Base at a time when the F-4Gs and F-16s were flying in the Gulf War.
He was born in Rising Sun, Ind., and graduated from Indiana University in 1979 with degrees in English and journalism.
After his 1980 commission from Officers’ Training School, he attended undergraduate navigator training at Mather Air Force Base, Calif., earning his wings in May 1981.
He completed F-4 training at Homestead Air Force Base, Fla., in May 1982. Colonel Lohide is a master navigator with more than 2,200 flying hours in the F-4 D/E/G. To date, he has logged 124 combat hours.
