Photo By Kelly Morris | U.S. Army Col. Bryan T. Woody, incoming director, Army Capability Manager -...... read more read more
The Army Aviation capability development community bid farewell to one leader and welcomed another during the Army Capability Manager — Reconnaissance and Attack change of charter ceremony at the U.S. Army Aviation Museum July 8, 2022.
Col. Bryan T. Woody, incoming director for ACM R/A, accepted the organization’s charter from outgoing director Col. Ryan K. Welch, as facilitated by Col. Joshua P. Higgins, director, Capability Development and Integration Directorate, Army Futures Command.
Higgins welcomed attendees, including leaders from the post and Wiregrass community, and began his remarks by commending the work of Aviation capability developers who provide the best capability to help Soldiers win and return home from the battlefield to their families.
“It’s professionals like you that are the unsung heroes,” Higgins said.
Higgins welcomed Woody to the team, and commended him for being selected for the position.
“Our expectations are sky high based off of his incredible skills and experience,” Higgins said. “We’re lucky to have him to lead such an important organization for our branch and our Army, especially at this time in our history.”
He also thanked Woody’s wife Angie and children for their years of dedicated service to the Army.
Woody in his remarks welcomed USAACE leaders, family and friends.
“Today I take tremendous pride in joining the ranks of the Army’s capabilities management team for both recon and attack,” he said.
He is already impressed by the diligence and passion the ACM R/A team has for the end user and Soldier, he said.
He thanked Welch for the warm welcome, and said Welch’s guidance would have a lasting impact on the team and the enterprise.
Woody also thanked his wife Angie and their family for their love and support.
No stranger to the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence mission, Woody formerly served as the commander of the 2nd Battalion, 13th Aviation Regiment, based at Fort Huachuca, Ariz., which trains Army Aviation’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems operators and maintainers.
His military journey began in 1991 as an Air Defense “Avenger” crew member, and after becoming a noncommissioned officer, he was accepted into the Army’s Green to Gold Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program at Bowie State University.
He commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1999, became qualified in the OH-58D Kiowa Warrior.
During his career he has served in operational assignments with the 101st Airborne Division and the 82d Airborne Division.
He completed multiple combat tours including in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. He also deployed to serve as senior aviation advisor to the Saudi Arabian National Guard.
Among his awards and decorations are the Bronze Star Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters, the Meritorious Service Medal with four Oak Leaf Clusters and two awards of the Air Medal.
As Higgins bid farewell to Welch, he lauded the significant accomplishments of ACM R/A during his tenure.
“Ryan said it best yesterday, ‘in 10 years ask me if I made a difference’. And that’s the truth in this business. It’s hard work,” Higgins said.
Welch’s most important work was building the expert ACM R/A team. When people return to the same team they retired from, “something is going right in that organization,” Higgins said.
He described Welch as a team player and his go-to for high profile missions, including the installation assessment for Future Vertical Lift, which will determine first units equipped and the location of unit field training program. It will be scrutinized by senior officials and significant budget decisions will be made based of his team’s work.
Higgins also thanked Welch’s wife Meredith and their two sons.
“There’s a lot of TDY in this job, a lot of late nights. Thank you for your support,” he said.
In his remarks, Welch thanked attendees and his family for their support.
He described his first acquaintance with capability managers from previous deployments, recalling the professionals who took their “gripes and complaints” and turned those into better capability that he saw materialize in the hands of warfighters.
Welch said his job leading his small team of active and retired Aviation professionals who have 50,000 hours of flight experience among them, who have Army-level responsibility, has been a “perfect capstone” for his career.
The ACM R/A team members understand where every attack helicopter and munition requirement is from inception to where it is today, know how to fight, and are focused on getting capability to the warfighter, he explained.
“I couldn’t have asked for a better team,” he said. “You do what’s right, and our Soldiers deserve nothing less.”
Empowered by a formal charter, Army capability managers serve as the warfighter’s representative and the single point of contact for all systems assigned to them. They ensure deliveries are developed along timelines and meet systems milestones.
They manage all facets of users’ activities and ensure all aspects of training are synchronized with the fielding of the assigned systems. They strive to meet systems development and management objectives.
Their relentless focus is to ensure current and future Aviation professionals receive the best possible equipment.
| Date Taken: | 07.08.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 07.08.2022 16:12 |
| Story ID: | 424619 |
| Location: | FORT RUCKER, ALABAMA, US |
| Web Views: | 645 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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