It's a Tyndall Thing

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Stefan Alvarez
  • 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs

General (Ret.) Charles "Chuck" Horner visited Tyndall today for a tour and reminisced about his service here from 1983 - 1985 as commander of the 23rd North American Aerospace Defense Command Region and Tactical Air Command Air Division, and then the Air Force Air Defense Weapons Center.

"I had never been to paradise before," said Horner. "I came to Tyndall in the 1980s and I was amazed at how beautiful it was. My favorite memory was getting home from work and putting on some goggles and fins and going to collect scallops and blue crabs. It is an amazing place to serve."

Horner was the architect of the air campaign that launched the Persian Gulf War, serving as the joint force air component commander. He commanded U.S. and allied air operations for Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm in Saudi Arabia from August 1990 until April 1991. If anyone knows airpower, it's Gen. Horner.

"I think flying aircraft was the same in WW1 as it is today flying the F-22," said Horner. "The aircraft have gotten better and more capable, so as the capability increases the importance of airpower increases. Tyndall is critical to modern airpower because of the speeds and range of the radars and sensors. You have to have a huge area where you can fly and go supersonic, test and validate weapons. That's not something you can do at just any base. It's a Tyndall thing."