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505th Command and Control Wing News

Wing bids hail, farewell to Aussie exchange officers

  • Published
  • By Noel Getlin
  • 505th Command and Control Wing Public Affairs
The 505th Command and Control Wing bids a fond farewell and congratulations on a job well done as their Australian exchange officer Wing Commander Geoffrey Shambrook returns to his native Australia and passes the mantle to fellow Aussie Wing Commander Mark Thompson.

Wing Commander Shambrook, who has been in the Royal Australian Air Force for nearly 30 years, culminates his 3-year tour as the 505th Training Group deputy commander and returns to his native country.

"Having come from a different operational background, I've had the privilege of providing the RAAF perspective on this exchange officer tour," said the wing commander, whose rank is the equivalent of a U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel.

In addition to his deputy group commander duties, he has provided expertise on the RAAF's coalition air operations in Afghanistan and helped promote an understanding of coalition aerospace capabilities and strategies in contemporary air warfare. He assisted the 505th Training Group Commander Col. Christopher DiNenna in maintaining standardization evaluation programs, instruction as a formal course instructor, and supported exercises and experiments on various Air and Space Operations Center (AOC) process areas.

"The primary value of the 505th CCW exchange program is that both the United States and Australia use the same AOC structure and weapons systems. We also need to make sure that the RAAF has an up-to-date AOC capacity aligned with U.S. AOC systems," said the wing commander, who was involved in developing Australia's AOC. "Australia, like the United States, rarely goes into combat alone, so we need to continue training our AOC warriors on the same processes while upholding tough combat standards.

As Australia and the United Kingdom continue their long tradition of fighting alongside U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, the need for integration expertise continues to be a critical requirement, especially in a theater air campaign where the combined forces air component commander will task aircraft and other weapons systems from coalition countries. Knowing the capabilities and limitations of each warfighting element is paramount when the rules of engagement define separate legal frameworks for partner nations.

While Wing Commander Shambrook looks forward to his return to Australia, he and his wife will miss the people they met here and during his travels to all 50 states. His U.S. experiences will serve him well in his next assignment as deputy director of Command and Control (C2) Capability Development for the RAAF.

Wing Commander Mark Thompson, the new TRG deputy commander, arrived here with his family on 17 Dec. His most recent posting was as the chief of strategy at Australia's AOC for the past two years.
It is a return of sorts for the wing commander and his family as he was a P-3 Orion navigator in the RAAF, and served previously as an exchange officer with the U.S. Navy in Virginia for three years.

It's not his first time at the 505th CCW either. He has attended C2 training courses here and taken part in a number of joint exercises; the last one being Talisman Sabre in July where he worked in the 613th AOC at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii.

Wing Commander Thompson said he looks forward to the experience of working with U.S. AOC processes and exercises. Like his predecessor, he will carry out 505th TRG deputy commander duties and focus on specific AOC training at Hurlburt Field while assisting in management of C2 training issues such as Intermediate AFFOR training, space training, cyber training and joint staff support.

"I hope to learn as much as I give of myself during my time here," he said. "And I plan to continue the great work of Wing Commander Shambrook."

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Wing bids hail, farewell to Aussie exchange officers

  • Published
  • By Noel Getlin
  • 505th Command and Control Wing Public Affairs
The 505th Command and Control Wing bids a fond farewell and congratulations on a job well done as their Australian exchange officer Wing Commander Geoffrey Shambrook returns to his native Australia and passes the mantle to fellow Aussie Wing Commander Mark Thompson.

Wing Commander Shambrook, who has been in the Royal Australian Air Force for nearly 30 years, culminates his 3-year tour as the 505th Training Group deputy commander and returns to his native country.

"Having come from a different operational background, I've had the privilege of providing the RAAF perspective on this exchange officer tour," said the wing commander, whose rank is the equivalent of a U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel.

In addition to his deputy group commander duties, he has provided expertise on the RAAF's coalition air operations in Afghanistan and helped promote an understanding of coalition aerospace capabilities and strategies in contemporary air warfare. He assisted the 505th Training Group Commander Col. Christopher DiNenna in maintaining standardization evaluation programs, instruction as a formal course instructor, and supported exercises and experiments on various Air and Space Operations Center (AOC) process areas.

"The primary value of the 505th CCW exchange program is that both the United States and Australia use the same AOC structure and weapons systems. We also need to make sure that the RAAF has an up-to-date AOC capacity aligned with U.S. AOC systems," said the wing commander, who was involved in developing Australia's AOC. "Australia, like the United States, rarely goes into combat alone, so we need to continue training our AOC warriors on the same processes while upholding tough combat standards.

As Australia and the United Kingdom continue their long tradition of fighting alongside U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, the need for integration expertise continues to be a critical requirement, especially in a theater air campaign where the combined forces air component commander will task aircraft and other weapons systems from coalition countries. Knowing the capabilities and limitations of each warfighting element is paramount when the rules of engagement define separate legal frameworks for partner nations.

While Wing Commander Shambrook looks forward to his return to Australia, he and his wife will miss the people they met here and during his travels to all 50 states. His U.S. experiences will serve him well in his next assignment as deputy director of Command and Control (C2) Capability Development for the RAAF.

Wing Commander Mark Thompson, the new TRG deputy commander, arrived here with his family on 17 Dec. His most recent posting was as the chief of strategy at Australia's AOC for the past two years.
It is a return of sorts for the wing commander and his family as he was a P-3 Orion navigator in the RAAF, and served previously as an exchange officer with the U.S. Navy in Virginia for three years.

It's not his first time at the 505th CCW either. He has attended C2 training courses here and taken part in a number of joint exercises; the last one being Talisman Sabre in July where he worked in the 613th AOC at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii.

Wing Commander Thompson said he looks forward to the experience of working with U.S. AOC processes and exercises. Like his predecessor, he will carry out 505th TRG deputy commander duties and focus on specific AOC training at Hurlburt Field while assisting in management of C2 training issues such as Intermediate AFFOR training, space training, cyber training and joint staff support.

"I hope to learn as much as I give of myself during my time here," he said. "And I plan to continue the great work of Wing Commander Shambrook."