"It's been fast paced, challenging and fun," for 66 MSG commander

  • Published
  • By J.C. Corcoran
  • 66th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
HANSCOM AFB, Mass. --  For two years, Col. Robert Boyles has commanded the 66th Mission Support Group; having overall responsibility for seven squadrons and divisions that included Services, Communications, Civil Engineering, Logistics, Security Forces, Mission Support and Contracting. He has, in one way or another, had an impact on every individual who works, lives or utilizes the many services here.

Now, after 26 years of dedicated service to his country and to the Air Force, Colonel Boyles will relinquish command of the 66 MSG on Sept. 29 to Col. Deborah L. Van De Ven. The change of command will be followed by his formal retirement ceremony capping a long and distinguished Air Force career for this dedicated Air Force officer.

Colonel Boyles' career in the Air Force began in 1982 following his graduation and commission through the Reserve Officer Training Corp, San Jose State University, Calif. Following a year of training he took on his first challenge as Manufacturing Manager and Contract Negotiator, Simulator Systems Program Office at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.

Subsequent assignments took him to: Tinker AFB, Oklahoma from 1991 to 1994; Seoul and Pusan South Korea from 1995 to 1997; then back to Wright-Patterson in 1997 where he stayed until April of 2000. Following three years there, he was off to Hawaii in May of 2000 followed by an assignment to Hill AFB, Utah before being deployed to serve as the principal assistant responsible for contracting-forces with Joint Contracting Command -Iraq and Afghanistan overseeing all contracting support for U.S. and coalition forces.

Reporting to Hanscom in July of 2006 he assumed command of the 66th Mission Support Group and considers Hanscom and command of the MSG his favorite assignment.

"It is rare in one's assignment to have all the resources you need at your disposal to accomplish your mission," Colonel Boyles said. "The scope of the job, with seven totally different organizations, never presented a dull moment. It is fast paced, very busy and challenging. It was fun and I loved it."

Now, as he looks back on his 26 years of service, Colonel Boyles recalls some of his proudest and fondest memories of his Air Force Career. He considers his deployment and the work he did in and around Iraq and Afghanistan as the "biggest and most professionally gratifying and rewarding accomplishment" of his career.

"Some of the things we did in working to help bolster the Iraqi economy where we were able to create small economic zones for small businesses where they could be safe, while providing us (coalition forces) with services and goods. It was one of the major accomplishments I'm most proud of," Colonel Boyles said.

"The travel I did around both of those countries to try and organize operational level contracting, working a lot with the Army divisions to support them was most rewarding," he said.

In addition to the challenges he faced while deployed, which included the oversight of 16 organizations in two countries and the associated travel "outside the wire" to ensure mission success, the Colonel cited his time as a commander as among the greatest challenges of his career. Having served in four different command roles in his career, Colonel Boyles said he sincerely believes that every Air Force officer should strive to be a commander.

Commenting on his philosophy of what makes a good commander, Colonel Boyles said that a good commander, "first and foremost should be able to recognize and use the strengths of their personnel. At the same time, be able to overcome and work through their weaknesses. Most importantly, to recognize that it's all about people," he said.

Noting that nothing gets done without good people, it's up to the commander to work with his people and ensure that they are properly trained; developed to be the best that they can be; are ready and, are rewarded for their efforts. Regardless of their strengths or their weaknesses, "everyone needs to be given the respect and dignity they deserve."
For the Airmen of today he advises never to be in the "receive mode waiting to be led by the hand". He added that Airmen need to be proactive because from day one of their career, everyone can be doing something to make things better for others. "There is a reason why one of the Air Force core values is Service Before Self," he said.

As Colonel Boyles and his family get ready to head back to Utah to begin the next chapter of their lives, he is grateful to the men and women of Hanscom for their support and notes that, "the Air Force has been a great life and a great profession. It has provided us a wonderful environment to raise a family and I recommend it to everyone."

To the men and women of Hanscom and in particular the 66th Mission Support Group, "I wish everyone the best and just want to say thank you for your support. It's been an honor to work with you and, it's been fun."