Photo By Kelly Morris | Maj. Gen. Clair A. Gill assumes command of the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence...... read more read more
FORT NOVOSEL, Ala.—The Fort Novosel community welcomed Maj. Gen. Clair A. Gill as U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence and Fort Novosel commander, and bid farewell to outgoing commander, Maj. Gen. Michael C. McCurry, during a Change of Command ceremony at Howze Field July 26, 2024.
In this role, Gill serves as installation’s senior commander, flight school commandant, and as the branch chief for Army Aviation.
Ceremony host Lt. Gen. Milford H. Beagle Jr., U.S. Army Combined Arms Center and Fort Leavenworth commander, welcomed attendees, thanked family members for their support, and said the day was all about “leaders, legacy and likelihood.”
“We recognize and pay honor to two great leaders today, Mac McCurry, Clair Gill and their families,” Beagle said. “They have a ton of similarities--their commonality of calloused hands, bad backs, bad knees from spending over 50 years in a cockpit of an airframe in service to our nation. Thank you both for that.”
He said McCurry and Gill both have roots that run deep in Army aviation: McCurry’s father and father-in-law are both retired Army aviators, and Gill’s grandfather served as a B-17 pilot during World War II. Both leaders also met their spouses at then-Fort Rucker.
“Clair, your goal is not to create a new legacy but rather determine how you weave a different but complimentary legacy into an existing strong legacy fabric that already exists here at Fort Novosel,” Beagle said.
“The likelihood that you will succeed because of the great team that you have here, this tremendous community, the power of the aviation community, is the highest likelihood of them all,” Beagle. “Clair and Fran, enjoy the next chapter of this journey. It’s going to be awesome.”
Gill arrives at USAACE from his most recent duty position as J-3 deputy director for Regional Operations and Force Management for the Joint Staff at the Pentagon.
Among his previous assignments, he served as director of Army Aviation on the HQDA staff, as executive officer to the Under Secretary of the Army, and as Deputy Commanding General (Support), 101st Airborne Division.
Gill commanded the 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, simultaneously deploying the unit to Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Korea, and Europe.
He commanded 4th Battalion (Assault), 101st Aviation Regiment, 101st Airborne Division and deployed the battalion to FOB Shank (Logar, Afghanistan), supporting combat operations throughout Regional Command – East.
He previously served on the Joint Reconnaissance Task Force, Joint Special Operations Command, and also commanded an Assault Helicopter Company (Black Widows) in 9th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment.
Gill also completed a Senior Service College fellowship at the Central Intelligence Agency, and is a master Army aviator with more than four years in combat.
Gill welcomed and thanked attendees, family, Soldiers, and those who participated in the change of command ceremony and made it possible.
“It is so good to be back in the Wiregrass and to be home at Fort Novosel with so many teammates new and old, many with whom we have served and deployed over the course of our career,” Gill said.
I truly am looking forward to working with all of you to continue to deliver aviation to our Army,” he said.
In the 1990s, Gill’s wife Fran, an Army aviation veteran, was a company commander at Cairns, and he was aide-de-camp to the commanding general, Gill explained.
“I cut my teeth here in the Aviation Center, much like many of you here today. I learned a lot of technical skills that would serve me well, but nothing burned into my being more than the fact that we train army warfighters here who happen to fly complex machines that enhance and provide the decisive edge to the combined arms fight,” he said.
Gill said though critics may argue the relevance and survivability of Army aviation in the future, he feels confident about the branch.
“To that, I’d reference you to Teddy Roosevelt’s 1910 speech about the citizenship in a republic. This team is in the arena to win. We haven’t seen an adversary moderately comparable to the U.S. Army’s aviation. The world’s tyrants only wish they could fight at night and in the terrain like we do; our enemies wish they had the professional mechanics and crew members that we grow and train. They tremble at the integration of our technology with our selfless commitment to our mission,” Gill said.
“With a modernized U.S. Army aviation, I sleep well thinking about what our Army brings to the joint fight even in an era of global unrest,” he said. “We will be engaged, we will be ready when called. And we’ll answer with that ominous sound of rotors coming over the horizon.”
Beagle lauded the McCurrys’ service to the Army and Army Aviation as they prepare to transition.
“We could spend half a day discussing the impact Mac McCurry has had on Fort Novosel, on the aviation community, and our Army. Mac truly walks away having left a legacy,” Beagle said.
Beagle said McCurry has been a “good ancestor,” and his impact will be felt for years to come. His accomplishments include an impact on aviation simulations for the foreseeable future, refocused warrant officer professional military education prior to the point of need, set a vision for the branch that would make his predecessors proud, and provided valuable counsel to senior Army leaders.
“Your work is greatly appreciated and valued, and (Gen. Gary Brito) wanted me to relay the same thing this morning, especially by people like me who have had the opportunity to serve closely with you during my 20 plus months of command,” Beagle said.
McCurry gave a special shoutout to members of the Orange Hat class in the audience that reported to then Fort Rucker with him in 1989, whose bond remains strong, as he thanked attendees.
He reflected on his family’s history at Fort Novosel, including seeing his father’s flight school class flying in formation over Howze Field in the 1970s.
“Today we pile two more years of memories from here into our ruck sack and our family scrap book and we’ve given another generation of McCurrys roots in the Wiregrass,” McCurry said.
He thanked the Wiregrass community for their support, commended the team he has worked with while at USAACE, and said he is proud to hold the title of Army aviator.
“The world is a dangerous place, and Army aviation as a part of the combined arms team is committed to fight and win anytime, anywhere on behalf of our nation,” McCurry said.
McCurry said Army aviation exists for one reason—the Soldier on the ground.
“If that ground Soldier needs to know what’s over the next hill, we find out. If they need to be put in a position of relative advantage, we put them there. If they need beans, bullets or water, we deliver. And God forbid if that soldier is laying wounded on the field of battle, we are coming to get them. Remember that, and we will always uphold the sacred trust,” McCurry said.
McCurry will now move on to serve at Army Futures Command in Austin, Texas.
| Date Taken: | 07.26.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 07.26.2024 14:26 |
| Story ID: | 477119 |
| Location: | FORT NOVOSEL, ALABAMA, US |
| Web Views: | 307 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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