56th welcomes new CV Published June 29, 2007 By Airman 1st Class C.J. 56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. -- The 56th Fighter Wing welcomed Col. Henry Reed as the new vice wing commander Wednesday. Colonel Reed comes to Luke from the 53rd Test and Evaluation Group, Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., where he was deputy commander. "I see my mission here as twofold," said Colonel Reed. "First, support the wing commander and execute his vision. Second, enable our group and squadron commanders to execute the wing mission and take care of our Airmen." Colonel Reed hopes to accomplish the first part of his mission, to support Brig. Gen. Tom Jones, 56th Fighter Wing commander, by developing America's Airmen for the Air Force. "The 56th FW is synonymous with greatness," he said. "I couldn't be more impressed with what I've seen here since I arrived." Colonel Reed continued as he spoke of the second part of his mission -- executing the wing mission. The biggest responsibility falls on the squadron and group commanders, he said. "One of my duties is to prioritize our scarce resources in order to give the commanders every opportunity for success. Ultimately how each commander executes his part of the wing's mission will drive how the wing accomplishes the Air Force mission." In 1998 through 2001, Colonel Reed was assigned to the Air Force Personnel Center at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. This experience equipped him to understand the importance of the Thunderbolts' ability to do their jobs in accomplishing the Luke mission. The wing trains pilots, mission ready Airmen and keeps Luke's personnel ready to deploy. Having been a squadron commander and having experienced packing up a squadron for deployment has helped Colonel Reed to understand the logistics behind the deployment process. "I can see that our deployment process is where it needs to be at Luke," he said. "In fact, in February and March we had zero discrepancies in our deployment line." During his career Colonel Reed has served in many capacities. He is a combat pilot with more than 3,200 flight hours in the F-16 and OV-10A. At the 35th Fighter Squadron, Kunsan Air Base, Republic of Korea, he served as 8th Operations Support Squadron chief of wing training. He also served at Spangdahlem AB, Germany, as 52nd Fighter Wing chief of safety, 23rd Fighter Squadron director of operations and 22nd Fighter Squadron commander. On a personal note Colonel Reed enjoys family time with his three sons, ages 14, 10 and 2. Colonel Reed also enjoys working with local communities to make life better for their members and the base. I'm thrilled to be here. This is a wonderful opportunity for my family and me. I look forward to working hard for the Thunderbolts and being part of this great team," he said.