Photo By Sgt. Yesenia Cadavid | U.S Army Brig. Gen Maurice Barnett, Commanding General of 10th Army Air and Missile...... read more read more
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U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Maurice Barnett, commanding general of the 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, and members of the command group visited U.S. Army air defenders of the 11th Missile Defense Battery Nov. 24 in Türkiye.
During the site visit, Barnett served the deployed troops Thanksgiving lunch, met with NATO Allies, the Turkish Air Force and held a leader professional development session with air defenders of the 11th Missile Defense Battery.
First, Barnett, U.S. Army Capt. Conor Knapp, the commander of 11th MDB, U.S. Army 1st Sgt. Jeffrey Powell, the 11th MDB First Sergeant, helped serve Thanksgiving lunch to our deployed troops and to the Turkish Air Force.
The site visit to 11th Missile Defense Battery allowed an opportunity for Barnett to meet the troops for the first time
"What better time to see firsthand how the troops operate than on Thanksgiving,” said Barnett. “To spend the day with deployed soldiers, who have been away from their families, for varying degrees, was humbling for me. It was a small sacrifice for me to spend Thanksgiving with our troops, and it was truly an honor serving and interacting with them.”
Next, Barnett and 11th MDB leadership met with Turkish Air Force Lieutenant Özcan Taha, the local commander of the Turkish Air Force Security Forces. Türkiye is strategically important, not just for the Middle East, but Europe and other parts of the world to conduct Air and Missile Defense and Space and Missile Defense imperatives.
“During the meeting, I am only there to supplement Knapp, not to replace him as a commander in that relationship.” said Barnett. “I am there to assist him get after the imperatives or the challenges that he's facing, to have those tough conversations with our Allies there and continue to build and expand on those relationships”
The 10th AAMDC and Turkish Air Force work together consistently to strengthen the interoperability necessary for maintaining and improving Türkiye’s air and missile defense capacity.
“We have an obligation as Americans to build positive relationships with our Allies and partners and spending time with the Turkish Air Force is tremendously important for establishing and continuing that relationship,” said Barnett.
Finally, Barnett ended Thanksgiving Day interacting with air defenders of the 11th Missile Defense Battery. Barnett sat down with a few air defenders during a leader professional development session. Prior to the LPD, those in the session read, "The Ideal Team Player" by Patrick Lencioni and discussed the three virtues that makes a good team player: hungry, humble & smart.
“Reading has given me access to knowledge, information and ideas that in some cases, personal experiences do not offer,” said Barnett. “I share books with others in hopes to wake up something in them that they didn't know existed or introduce them to an idea from an author. That's my calling; to help others reach their full potential through leader professional development sessions, sharing books, thoughts and ideas.”
Motivated air defenders of 11th MDB were also recognized by the commanding general and were presented with challenge coins for their hard work during their deployment.
Barnett and U.S. Army 1st Lt. Gabrielle Purnell, the 10AAMDC Aide De Camp, took time before lunch to hit the gym with some of the Soldiers and qualified for the 11th MDB 500-pound club.
“I made them a promise to come back in the spring and earn the 1000-pound club title,” said Barnett. “It is a little more challenging with the age difference, but to get out there and lead by example is important for me.”
The day concluded with a briefing from the 11th MDB team where they discussed recent training exercises conducted with the Turkish Air Force.
“I'm extremely proud of our team and leadership out there for building cohesion, accomplishing the mission, and completing their certification exceptionally well,” said Barnett.
| Date Taken: | 12.14.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 12.14.2022 05:40 |
| Story ID: | 435144 |
| Location: | TR |
| Web Views: | 195 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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