Detachment 4 stands up

by Senior Airman Rose Gudex
21st Space Wing Public Affairs

12/16/2015 - PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo.  -- The 21st Operations Group activated Detachment 4 during an assumption of command ceremony Dec. 8 at Beale Air Force Base, Calif.

Col. Troy Endicott, 21st Operations Group commander, presided over the ceremony while Capt. Jonathan Brydie, 21st OG Det. 4 commander, assumed command of the new detachment.

"This is a historical milestone for the 21st OG," Endicott said. "What we train and operate at Beale Air Force Base is critical to the defense of our nation and allies. This detachment allows us to strengthen mission excellence by partnering our training assets with space operations."

Each geographically separated unit of the 21st Space Wing and 21st OG requires Airmen to be knowledgeable on the operation of sophisticated equipment. Since the roles and responsibilities of the Air Education and Training Command to provide initial qualification training to each unit have changed, units are now responsible for providing training on their own.

"The mission of the detachment is to train Airmen and our allies on Upgraded Early Warning Radar fundamentals," Brydie said. "In order for the mission to happen at other locations, we need to make sure the Airmen and allies are tactically trained and knowledgeable on the equipment."

"Putting the detachment next to our operations within the 21st OG will allow us to go faster and posture ourselves for today's and tomorrow's challenges in the space domain," Endicott said.

The 21st OG manages all operation units in the 21st SW. Located in 13 different time zones; the wing's operations cover the entire world. 

The 21st OG is assigned to the 21st SW, Peterson AFB, Colo. and includes active duty U.S and Canadian Air Forces and Department of Defense civilians. As Air Force Space Command's largest and most geographically separated operations group, its mission is to command and control missile warning and space control units while providing real-time missile warning, attack assessments and space control around the globe.