FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE -- Airmen from 92nd Air Refueling Wing gathered in a hangar Monday to send off its commanding officer, Col. Cassius Bentley, and to welcome Col. Chesley Dycus to the role of installation commander.
The change-of-command ceremony took place in front of two of the wing’s parked KC-135 tanker aircraft, with one carrying a placard with the name of outgoing Col. Bentley.
An estimated 500 guests were in attendance, including a host of military officers and local elected officials.
Both colonels were given time to speak, and commander of the 18th Air Force Maj. Gen. Kenneth Bibb delivered remarks.
In a display of time-honored military tradition, a formation representing the base’s more than 13,000 airmen rendered a final salute to their leader of two years, which he returned before passing the unit banner (known in the armed services as a guidon) to his successor. An airman then carefully replaced the placard on the KC-135 with one bearing Col. Dycus’s name.
Moving up from a vice commander role at Kansas’s 22nd Air Refueling Wing, Col. Dycus expressed his excitement for the new position.
“I’ve heard so much about the great partnership Fairchild has within the Spokane community and the surrounding cities,” Dycus said in a statement. “My goal is to continue that tradition of connectedness and compassion within the Inland Northwest.”
Col. Bentley will be transferring to Scott Air Force Base in Illinois, where he will begin a staff role at Air Mobility Command.
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