A heartfelt thank you from a grateful CO to his team.

Today was a poignant day as it marked the end of my tour as a Commanding Officer. For the last three and a half years I've had the privilege of serving as CO Maintenance Wing at our Ohakea Air Force Base in the Manawatu. Below is a copy of my speech from today's handover parade:

"Logistics Commander Air, Base Commander Ohakea, Chief Engineer, Distinguished guests, but most importantly, to all of you, the men and women of Maintenance Wing Ohakea, thank you for indulging me this one, final opportunity to address you all as Commanding Officer.?

As Commanders we are nothing without our people. We absolutely stand on the shoulders of giants and as I stand here today, I am acutely aware of the contribution you have each made to Maintenance Wing, to Base Ohakea, to the New Zealand Defence Force and to New Zealand.

Reflecting on everything that has happened in the three and a half years since I took command is surreal. None of us could have imagined quite how complex, complicated and challenging the coming years would be. But in December 2019 just a few months after Maintenance Wing Ohakea was formed, reports of a strange flu-like virus arrived from the Far East. By early 2020 the virus had spread to Europe and with the death toll rising, talk in Wellington and HQNZDF turned to border closures and other controls.?

We had our first case in New Zealand in Feb and by March the country was in lockdown and a state of National Emergency declared.?

What came next was unprecedented. It challenged us as a Command but it also brought out the very best in each and every one of you. And as we grappled with Covid and the NZDF embarked on Operation Protect, I couldn’t help but reflect on my words to you all as a newly appointed CO some months earlier:

Tu tahi,?

Mahi tahi,?

Ngana ki te hiranga:?

Stand together, Work together, Strive for excellence.?

The teamwork, the comradeship, the professionalism you each demonstrated during those trying times was truly remarkable and as a Commanding Officer, I could not be more proud or more grateful for the contribution you have each made.??

Leading Maintenance Wing here at Ohakea has been a privilege. Its given me an insight into the lives, careers and aspirations of a diverse and talented group of individuals.

But you are so much more than?just?a group of individuals. You are more than a collective of technicians and supervisors and managers and officers. You are a community. You’ve celebrated together the arrival of new family members, promotions, sporting achievements, weddings. You’ve grieved together and consoled one another at the loss of friends and loved ones. You’ve supported each other in times of hardship and you’ve worked together to achieve success.??You are all unique, with your own skills and abilities but together you achieve something far greater than the sum of your parts. Simply put, you are a community, a family, a whanau.

So as my time as CO rapidly comes to a close, and mindful of how much I have asked of you these last few years, I have a few final requests:?

Firstly, what you have here, that sense of community, of comradeship, of whanau, – guard it. You will find that nowhere else.??Please do not take it for granted as it requires each and every one of you to work together to ensure this culture of community, comradeship and commitment to one another is assured into the future. You are all custodians of that culture, please protect it.?

Secondly, don’t underestimate how far you can go in this organisation. My military career began 26 years ago as a private serving in the British Army. Back than as a Royal Engineer Sapper, I never once imagined I would one day be promoted to Wing Commander and have the responsibility and the privilege of serving as a Commanding Officer. Nor too could I have imagined the adventures and opportunities this career would present me, the friendships made, and the experiences that would shape me as an engineer and as a leader.??

I have absolute confidence that you each have the potential to climb to the highest ranks, whether as a commissioned officer or as an enlisted aviator. One day, one of you will stand where I do now, addressing those within your command and feeling every bit as proud.?

So take the opportunities when they come. Learn, grow, challenge yourselves and step outside your comfort zone. You each have tremendous potential, please do not squander it.?

Thirdly, please know that rank does not mean importance. I’m not sure if the microphone picked up the sharp intake of breath from my esteemed friends and colleagues behind me but I firmly believe that. While I may be (for the next few minutes at least) the most senior member of Maintenance Wing Ohakea, I am far from the most important member of the team.??We each have our own role to play and?my?role is simply to create an environment in which each and everyone of you can excel, to give you the resources you need to do your job, to provide you the opportunities to learn and grow as aviators and as leaders.?Your?role is to do the work that gets our aircraft safely into the sky and achieving their mission. But only when we all work together can we achieve success.?

Over the last few years I’ve enjoyed many conversations with some of our most junior personnel. I’ve learned from these conversations, been inspired and impressed.??You each have a part to play in making our place a great space so please do not feel your opinion, experience or suggestion is any less valid on account of your rank or lack of. Please continue to play an active part in shaping what we do here at Ohakea and across the Air Force.?

Finally, please also look after the new Commanding Officer. While relinquishing command is a sad occasion for any Officer, I am delighted to be handing the reins over to my good friend Wing Commander Becky Willis. Becky and I have served alongside one another for over 20 years and I know her to be a compassionate, capable officer and accomplished engineer. I congratulate her on her promotion to Wing Commander and appointment as a CO. I couldn’t be happier for her.?

I also know that if you offer her the same support, loyalty and commitment I have enjoyed during my tenure as CO, if you approach the challenges to come with the same tenacity, ingenuity and professionalism, if you stand together, work together and strive for excellence, the Wing and the men and women who serve within it, will prevail.

Thank you?all?for your Service, I wish you the very best for the future.?

Tu tahi, Mahi tahi, Ngana ki te hiranga Tena koutou, tena koutou, tena tatou katoa."