Wing leadership visits local Air Force assets

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Christopher Reel
  • 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  The 325th Fighter Wing commander, Col. David E. Graff, along with 325th FW command chief, Chief Master Sgt. Raymond DeVite Jr., and other wing leadership visited the Air Force Combat Dive School, Naval Support Activity Panama City, April 10 to familiarize themselves with other local Air Force mission sets and explore opportunities for collaboration.

The Air Force Combat Dive Course instructs Airmen on the fundamentals for combat diving and underwater search and rescue as they train to become pararescuemen. The course is one of eight training courses Airmen must endure before being fully certified in their career fields.

The Airmen assigned to the Navy dive school utilize Tyndall as their servicing installation.

Colonel Graff wanted to ensure they knew they were part of our team should they need assistance with anything, explained Chief DeVite.

"Even though Tyndall is not within our chain of command, it's always great to have people in our uniform see what we do," said Master Sgt. Beau Wagner, AFCDC superintendant. "A lot of people don't really know that the Air Force has assets here and has this kind of mission. It's a great opportunity for us to highlight what we do."

Sergeant Wagner escorted wing leadership as they toured training facilities, class rooms, and observed Airmen in underwater combat dive training. They were also taken on a boat ride to visit the open water training sites.

"My favorite part of the visit was watching the Airmen undergo a series of underwater exercises for a period of 13 minutes that tested their ability to maintain focus and remedy instructor inputs," said Chief DeVite. "I am grateful that these young Americans voluntarily put themselves through that type of difficulty so that America stays free."