New Vice is combat tested, command approved

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Marissa Tucker
  • 39th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey --  Members of the Incirlik community have probably noticed a new bird in town as the 39th Air Base Wing recently welcomed a new vice commander who is dedicated to maintaining and intensifying Incirlik's combat readiness.

Col. Brent Bigger, 39th Air Base Wing Vice commander, is the newest addition to wing leadership here. As a master navigator with almost 3,000 flight hours in several aircraft, his experiences add to the diversity of Incirlik and have prepared him for the position.

"Your entire career is a stepping stone to get you to the point where you're at," Bigger said. "My goal is to support Col. Craige and the 39th ABW with every ounce of energy that I have."

As the former 332nd Expeditionary Mission Support Group commander at Joint Base Balad, Iraq, the vice commander is no stranger to these parts of the world. Last year while in command during the drawdown of U.S. forces in Iraq and the ending of Operation New Dawn, he took on the responsibility of closing down the base and turning it over to Iraqi forces.

"For about the last month we were in Balad, the remainder of wing leadership forward deployed, so I was essentially the mayor of Balad as we closed everything down," he said. "That was a huge milestone in the sense that I was in charge of the base. I would look around and it was up to me to make these major decisions. I had to grow up fast."

This Oregon State graduate's extensive range of flight experience leads some of his visions for the wing. Bigger see's the incredible capability of Incirlik to house more aircraft in the future with very short notice. He believes Incirlik has the potential to be at the forefront of air support at any given time.

"There's so much more we can do. We're a forward deployed jumping-off point. We have shown that Incirlik is ready," Bigger said. "We're ready to support any mission that happens to come our way. From a known threat to something completely unexpected, what we are capable of is to have the presence here and achieve mission success directly."

Speaking on the capabilities of the base, Bigger said since he arrived at Incirlik, he has been extremely impressed by the professionalism, knowledge and dedication to duty of 39th ABW Airmen. He plans to not only support Airmen's ideas to improve Incirlik, but to maintain the wing's total mission readiness.

Following the 39th ABW's current warrior ethos of Fit, Focused and Ready, Bigger would also like to see Team Incirlik become an even more tighter-knit community than it already is. The geographic location of Incirlik can be intimidating for some who desire to immerse themselves in the culture and area, but as the new second-in-command, he encourages Airmen and families here to find their niche in the community to help keep the stress levels low and morale high.

"My advice is to go out and see what you can do for your base community. You're only here a short period of time," he said. "It's too easy to say 'I'm trapped here on a base, there's not a lot to do.' If you really go out there and look, you're going to find something you're interested in."

Community involvement, strong family relationships and a commitment to the core values are components the vice commander believes will lead to continued mission success and all-around readiness for Team Incirlik.

"If we all give of our talents even in a small way to improve the Incirlik community, it will create a quick tour that you'll never forget and look back at as your best tour in the Air Force, wishing that it was longer," Bigger said.