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  • Lessons taken from CSAF Wing Commander's Call

    Last week, I had the distinct honor and pleasure to attend the Air Force Chief of Staff's "Wing Commander's Call" hosted by Gen. Mark A. Welsh III.It's always good to get clear direction from the top, and this meeting certainly filled the bill on that note.Gen. Welsh began the meeting by telling us how proud he is of all the work being done by all
  • D.U.I. - Don’t Underestimate Influenza

    You may be familiar with the following headlines on major news sources: "CDC: Flu shot less effective this year because current virus has mutated," "Why scientists guessed wrong on this year's flu vaccine, and why it could happen again," and "Get Your Flu Shot Anyway, Despite Genetic 'Drift.'"  Well, this is about that too, but not really. This
  • The Two E’S: ‘EMPOWERMENT AND ENCOURAGEMENT!’

    It doesn't seem possible to me that it's been approximately 18 months since I had my first opportunity to serve as the Launch Decision Authority here on the Eastern Range -- and that was for MUOS-2, which launched July 19, 2013, about five weeks after I had the fantastic opportunity to assume command of the 45th Space Wing.Since that time, we have
  • 2015: “The Year of Connection!”

    Let me give a hearty  congratulations to SpaceX, NASA, all our mission partners and to our great "Team Patrick-Cape" members who did an outstanding job with the successful launch of CRS-5,  lifted to the skies on a Falcon 9 Dragon spacecraftin the early morning hours of January 10.This was the fifth of 12 SpaceX flights NASA contracted with the
  • 2014: ‘The year that was … fabulous’

    With 2014 coming to a close, I wanted to look back over the year at our successes and the challenges we have faced as a team.No one was sure what to expect this year, especially with the turbulence - and uncertainty - caused with the government shutdown, employee furloughs and sequestration issues of 2013.Toss all that in the mix with the impending
  • Wishing you a happy, healthy and SAFE holiday season; Please take time to 'un-plug, rest, and re-charge batteries'

    Happy Holidays Team Patrick-Cape!It seems like every December, Eddie and I sit back and wonder (just like many of you) "where did the year go?"Well, in our minds, it's not so much where it went, but rather, what we did with it.And let's make no mistake about it, Team Patrick-Cape hit it out of the park all year long with 18 successful launches to
  • Are you ‘In?’

    The college football season is on the home stretch and it's been exciting.As the inaugural year of the national championship playoff system, the country was infused with a spirit of optimism ... maybe your team could make it into the playoff.  Maybe, with a great deal of effort and some luck, they would be "in."We all know that being lucky isn't
  • EFT-1: A launch legacy we’ll proudly carry forever

    It seems every time I think I can't be more proud to be your commander, you go and do something else to make me realize (once again) that there is no limit to the greatness this team can achieve when we all come together.That was certainly the case in the early morning hours of Dec. 5, when we fully supported and successfully launched a United
  • Remembering, honoring Pearl Harbor and Pacific Theater Veterans

    This Saturday will mark the 73rd anniversary of "A Day That Will Live in Infamy" - the Imperial Japanese Navy bombings at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, that commenced just before 8 a.m. on Dec. 7, 1941.As you may know, more than 2,000 Americans were killed and more than 1,000 were injured, in the sneak attack that propelled the United States into World War
  • It takes a whole lot of 'You' to make a Team

    Where did this year go?Seriously ... it seems like just yesterday, we were gearing up for a Falcon 9  (THAICOM 6) launch on Jan. 6, 2014, and now we're heading into the final stretch of the year with just  two missions left.On Dec. 4, a United Launch Alliance Delta IV-Heavy rocket will launch NASA's Orion multi-purpose crew vehicle on Exploration
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