1st Battalion, 1st Air Defense Artillery Change of Command By First Lieutenant James Todd, E CO 1-1ADA The 1st Battalion, 1st Air Defense Artillery was originally constituted on 27 April 1798 as a Company in the 2nd Regiment of Artillerist and Engineers. Captain Lemuel Gate served as the first Company Commander. Over the span of over two centuries, the company size element has reorganized and expanded itself into a mighty battalion known as Snake Eyes, “First Among Equals”. On 19 June 2013, the dawn of a new era began for 1-1 ADA. On this day Lieutenant Colonel Joseph McCallion Jr. and Command Sergeant Major Patrick A. Kutac passed the colors and the command of the Battalion to Lieutenant Colonel Benjamin R. Ogden and Command Sergeant Major Paul M. Maynard. Before addressing the aesthetics of the ceremony, we should unveil some of LTC McCallion’s final thoughts as Commander for his Battalion. During an interview with LTC McCallion, his pride in 1-1 ADA Soldiers was evident. Amongst the many accomplishments the Battalion has attained here, a few stood out for LTC McCallion. The first accomplishment that stood out was the establishment of the Battalion Life Cycle rotation that spans thru four months, and includes a Black Cycle (Deep Maintenance), a Yellow Cycle (Gunnery), a Green Cycle (Mission) and a Red Cycle (Support Operations). The former Battalion Commander believes that the Deep Maintenance Program has been an obvious enhancement to the readiness of our equipment. The gunnery cycle also improved our ability to allocate time and resources to one Battery and ensure they are certified at the highest level. Finally, the Mission Battery Concept has ensured that we are always ready to “fight tonight” and we have had the opportunity to validate this concept multiple times over the past 18 months due to the provocative missile activity within the region. This battle rhythm also brought predictability to 1-1 ADA’s Soldiers and their families. Secondly, LTC McCallion emphasized how much the Battalion continues to improve its Joint integration with not only the 623d Air Control Flight of the 18th Wing, but also with Marine Air Control Squadron-4. This enhances our ability to execute air and missile defense within a highly complex joint and bilateral environment. Also, the Battalion has had tremendous success with passing data and training with the Japanese Patriot units on the island and have recently begun integration with the Japanese Ground Self Defense Force 6th ADA’s Chu-SAM system. This is another highly capable system to aid in executing seamless air and missile defense operations. Operating in a highly dynamic joint and bilateral environment with hundreds of Soldiers and various organizations one can predict that everything may not run flawlessly the first time you try something, however, McCallion remained in awe of the professionalism of the leaders and Soldiers in this unit. LTC McCallion believes that 1-1 ADA has proven to be a learning organization, where we quickly learn what does and does not work and forge ahead with the solution. With that being said his parting words of advice to the new commander were, “enjoy the fastest and most rewarding two years of your life with the greatest group of leaders and Soldiers.” To the leaders McCallion had this to say: “Continue to talk to your Soldiers about the need to be ready to ‘fight tonight’ and the implications of being tactically emplaced, protecting an operational center of gravity with strategic implications. Once they appreciate the ‘why’, they will always impress you with their motivation, perseverance and professionalism to achieve the desired end state.” The formal change of command ceremony took place on Torii Station’s Renegade LZ at 0800 hours and lasted approximately 45 minutes. The LZ was given a makeover with an assortment of ADA patriot launchers and military vehicles. To begin the ceremony, 1-1 ADA Leaders and Soldiers displayed their discipline as they marched around the LZ. Major William Hunter, as the Commander of Troops, precisely controlled the movement of the Soldiers. Also in attendance was the III MEF’s very own marching band. The band used bugle calls to direct the movements of the battalion. The Marine Corp band also played music during the entrance, the inspection, and the “pass in review”. The group did an outstanding job keeping 1-1 ADA Soldiers in-step with their rhythmic beats and displayed their marching skills during roll call. The Reviewing Officer, Colonel Eric L. Sanchez, 35th ADA BDE Commander, encouraged both the outgoing and incoming command teams through his remarks. Once the remarks were complete the new battalion commander ordered the reputable pass in review. The ceremony came to its conclusion with the singing of the ADA March and the Army Song. The new Battalion Commander, LTC Ogden, mentioned during his initial brief to the Battalion that the ceremony was one of the best he had witnessed. Although commanders may come and go, the colors will always remain. It is within this phrase that one can realize that the mission is still the same and no matter what obstacles 1-1 ADA faces we must remain ready to fight tonight.
Posted on: Wed, 17 Jul 2013 05:00:12 +0000
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