JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas -- Early in his career as a security forces officer, Maj. Gen. Bradley Spacy learned the value of military cross-functional capability, and he’s been a firm believer ever since.
It’s fitting, then, that the 28-year veteran with vast combat support experience took command of the Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center July 22 at a ceremony in the Gateway Club here.
He replaced Maj. Gen. Theresa Carter, the commander since the unit’s inception in April 2015, who is retiring after 31 years of service.
Spacy had served as the unit’s director of expeditionary support in its first year of operation and was named in March to move up to take command.
AFIMSC is an Air Force Materiel Command unit that supports 77 Air Force installations, nine major commands and two direct reporting units with an annual budget of $10 billion. The Center integrates and executes more than 150 mission capabilities in the areas of civil engineering, base communications, ministry programs, financial management, logistics readiness, operational acquisition, security forces, and Airmen and family services.
Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski, AFMC commander who officiated the ceremony, said she is confident in Spacy’s leadership in further developing the capability AFIMSC brings to the fight because he’s spent his entire career providing combat support.
“I know you have the right background and I’m looking forward to continuing to work with this team to support our Air Force in providing agile combat support,” she said in addressing Spacy at the ceremony. “Under your leadership, I know you’ll make this organization even better.”
At the change of command, Spacy recalled how he first saw the strength of cross-functional teams like AFIMSC when he was a second lieutenant stationed at George Air Force Base participating in exercises with civil engineer counterparts in Southern California.
“We learned from each other and shortly after that went off to Desert Storm and Desert Shield and showed how effective that (capability) was in wartime,” Spacy said. “Throughout my career in different assignments, I tried to carry that with me as I learned more and more. The seed was planted and it continued to grow.”
He talked about how he emphasized the need to work cross functionally when, as Captain Spacy, he taught security forces members in the Air Base Defense Command Course at Lackland. Later, he received more of his own cross-functional education when he was a student at Marine Corps Command and Staff College.
“As a security forces officer, I was invited to the map by Marines, Sailors and fighter pilots to help build a plan we’d exercise in that school to carry out the joint requirement,” the general said. “I felt like I had a part they hadn’t thought about.”
Based on his later experience in Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, he described how he helped develop a new Air Force capability: ground combat support convoy operations.
“The Air Force embraced one of the hardest missions in that war,” Spacy said. “Bus drivers became combat operators. We were bolting armor on soft-skinned vehicles just to get them down the road. Everybody knew the warfighters needed (us).
“We learned that every convoy had to know how to fight and work together with a cross-functional capability to keep us strong.”
As a result of those experiences, the general said he would often ask himself, “What if we did this all the time? What if we organized, trained and equipped and fought cross functionally from the installation and mission support side of the house? What would that look like?”
“To the men and women of AFIMSC, ‘what if’ is here,” the general said in addressing the members of his command. “I’ve seen the work you’ve done over the last couple of years. First, from the outside when I was still in Europe ... and then from the inside this last year as I’ve worked alongside you, watching the decisions you made and how you went about your work.
“You showed the Air Force what ‘what if’ could do, and it’s been amazing.”\
In less than a year’s time, Spacy said the AFIMSC team is providing full-spectrum, enterprise-wide, integrated combat support.
“But the real work is just starting,” he added. “We’ve got to take this to the next level and the next level to create capability ... and help change the way we fight the war to keep America safe.
“I’ve seen your work ethic. I’ve watched your innovation. I know we can do it. It’s going to take hard work. Lisa and I will be there with you every step of the way ... and it’s going to be a lot of fun,” he concluded.
Spacy is a 1987 ROTC distinguished graduate of Fresno State University in Fresno, California. His installation command experience includes the 88th Air Base Wing at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, and 81st Training Wing at Keesler AFB, Mississippi.
The new commander’s breadth of experience also includes serving as chief of the Senate Liaison Office, where he was responsible for congressional legislative affairs in the Senate, articulating Air Force priorities and programs to senators and staff members. Earlier in his career, he commanded The United States Air Force Honor Guard.
Prior to being assigned to AFIMSC in July 2015, he was the director of Logistics, Installations and Mission Support at Headquarters U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa at Ramstein Air Base, Germany.