513th Air Control Group welcomes new commander

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Mark Hybers
  • 507th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  Colonel David Robertson assumed command of the 513th Air Control Group Friday Jan. 10, 2013, during a ceremony held in the 970th Airborne Air Control Squadron auditorium.

Colonel Robertson comes to the 513th ACG after serving two-and-a-half years as Chief, Battle Watch Branch, Force Generation Center, Robins AFB, Ga.

Colonel Robertson is no stranger to Tinker AFB, having served as a student with the 552nd Training Squadron, and working in various positions with the 964th and 966th AACS before moving over to the 513th ACG. He has more than 3,500 flying hours in the E-3 Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft.

During the ceremony, Colonel Robertson discussed his priorities as the new commander: Air Force core values, Total Force Integration, and Family.

Having worked alongside the men and women of the 513th in the past, Colonel Robertson said he's seen first the core values demonstrated time and again.

"We've flown many missions over a lot of countries and I've seen integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do demonstrated consistently every single time," Colonel Robertson said.

Colonel Robertson also spoke at length about total force integration. He said due to budget challenges, it's the way the Air Force gets its mission done now and the way it will continue to get done in the future.

"I can't think of a better example of TFI than right here at Tinker Air Force Base," he said. "Team Tinker, the 513th, 507th, 552nd and the 137th (Oklahoma Air National Guard), we live and breathe TFI here every day - that's how we get the mission done."

Colonel Robertson went on to say the 513th already has a great relationship with their sister wing at the 552nd and "if we strike the right balance of these three priorities, then we will be successful as a team, as a family and as an Air Force."

Colonel Robertson finished his Bachelor of Arts in English Composition at the University of Florida in 1992 and his Master of Business Administration at Oklahoma City University in 2004.

Colonel William A. Lyons, assistant vice commander and chief of staff, 10th Air Force, Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base, Texas, served as presiding officer.