Saturday, Jun. 28, 2008

Former commander returns to Robins to say goodbye

Maj. Gen. Mike Collings returned to Middle Georgia on Friday for a few additional moments of what he called "Camelot" before ending his 33-year career in the Air Force.

The Warner Robins Air Logistics Center commander from 2004 to 2006 has been chief of the Office of Military Cooperation in Egypt the last two years, but chose Robins Air Force Base and the Museum of Aviation for his retirement site.

Family, friends and civic leaders along with former employees and co-workers attended the proceedings at the Century of Flight Hangar. Edward Koenig III, retired member of the Senior Executive Service, presided over an agenda that included presentation of the Defense Superior Service Medal to Collings and a formal reading of the retirement orders.

Koenig called himself an unabashed fan and close friend of Collings. "He set the standard for performance and leadership his entire career," the Sacramento, Calif., resident told the museum crowd. "He's consistently been about forming an effective team, leading from the front and taking care of people."

The former Air Force Materiel Command official said Collings drove the local center to even greater heights. "He always got the best from people," Koenig explained. "It was like you were working with him and not for him. You always felt admired and respected."

Brig. Gen. Andy Busch, now commander of Defense Supply Center Richmond in Virginia, headed the 402nd Maintenance Wing at Robins under Collings. He said it was a great honor to work for the general.

"I first met Gen. Collings almost 28 years ago," Busch said after the ceremony. "He was a good boss who would give intent, allow us to choose the path ahead, then was very supportive."

Steve Davis, the retired former executive director of Warner Robins ALC, said Collings honestly cared for his people.

"He cared for their safety, their education, their development and about giving them every opportunity," he remarked.

Collings, who will reside in Arkansas, said an uncle imparted a guiding principle that he never forgot. The uncle, a B-17 pilot during World War II, was shot down over Europe and was missing for nine months.

"He was picked up by the underground and finally repatriated in North Africa," the former F-16 fighter pilot said.

The uncle separated from the military at the end of the war but decided to return. He had been an officer with hours of flying experience but went through basic training again as an enlisted man. Eventually, his past service was identified, and he was promoted to major and returned to flying status.

"I asked him why he had not told them about his prior service," Collings told the museum audience, "and he said, 'It's never about you. It's about serving your country in whatever capacity and the honor that goes along with it.' "

The former commander said he never forgot that response and tried to incorporate it as a core value.

Asked after the ceremony why he chose to retire at Robins, he said a major reason was the proximity of two children in Atlanta and other family members within a day's driving distance.

"But there is always an assignment in your career that you look back on and say that was my Camelot," the general added in reference to King Arthur's idyllic place of justice, bravery and truth. "Mine was Robins."

He said the center's work force achieved many things in a short period of time.

"The people of this base - their dedication and willingness to change, embrace new thinking and adopt new ways of doing business - were really incredible and unique," Collings said. "I wanted to come back and pay a final salute to them. It meant a lot to me."

Although he is retiring, Collings said the fight is far from over. "We're still a country at war," he stressed, "and what the people do here is incredibly important to ensure we are victorious. That war is not going to be finished any time soon. We may clean it up in Iraq, but it's going to pop up some place else. The Air Force has to be ready on a moment's notice."

To contact writer Gene Rector,

call 923-3109, extension 239.