# Aviation employees welcome new DLA Aviation at Ogden commander

/ Published July 30, 2018
Richmond, Va., 
Defense Logistics Agency Aviation employees, Air Force customers, friends and family, all gathered July 20 to bid farewell to Air Force Col. Daniel Lockert, who has commanded DLA Aviation at Ogden for the last three years and to welcome Air Force Col. Paul Smith, as the new commander. The ceremony was held at The Landing Ballroom on Hill Air Force Base, Utah. 

Air Force Brig. Gen. Linda Hurry, commander, DLA Aviation, officiated the ceremony and thanked Lockert for his leadership, highlighting several of his team’s accomplishments.

“So right up front Dan, I want to express my appreciation for all you have done to lead these men and women,” she said. “I have always said, if you take care of the people, they will take care of the mission, and that is exactly what they did ... they improved readiness for our nation’s warfighters.”

Hurry said Lockert’s team provided exceptional support to the warfighter and cited a few examples. 

Working with the 309th Missile Maintenance Group, the team established the first centrally-managed retail support for intercontinental ballistic missile launch facilities and control centers.  The new approach decreased potential material procurement and availability-related work stoppages. 

They also upgraded old structures and equipment, most significantly, the renovation of the automated stacker machine.  The Shop Service Center team relocated assets and material to multiple locations to accommodate 12 vertical lift modules capable of storing 10,000 assets and 2.5 tons of raw stock. 

“The team is driving up material availability and driving down back orders,” Hurry said. “The list of your team’s accomplishments goes on and on ... Dan, thank you for all that you have done for the entire DLA team and for our warfighters around the world.”

Speaking to his team, Lockert told them he has been wearing his uniform in one form or another for 26 years.  “Your dedication and commitment to excellence inspires me. You make the impossible possible,” he said. “Each and every one of you are what makes this organization great. You are its heart and soul. We are an extremely diverse group but together, we are DLA Aviation at Ogden.” 

“Although it’s tough to give up a great command," said Hurry. “Dan is excited for his next assignment at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, where he will lead all Air Force logistics readiness operations in Pacific Air Forces."

In transitioning to the change of command portion of the ceremony, Hurry told audience members taking command is indeed an honor and a privilege, but it is also a tremendous responsibility.

“Being successful, involves great trust on the part of the commander that subordinates will do their jobs to the best of their ability, day in and day out,” she said. “It also involves great trust on the part of the subordinates, that they believe in and will execute the decisions their new leader is going to make without fail.  It is through this trust, that together we make our organizations better than when we find them.”

Hurry thanked employees in advance for taking care of their new commander and his family, telling them she has complete trust in Smith and knows he is the right person to lead the team. 

Smith takes over at DLA Aviation at Ogden after commanding the 748th Supply Chain Management Group at Hill. Under his leadership, the group had the highest asset availability in the 448th Supply Chain.  

“He understands the needs of our customers and can translate them into supply chain requirements,” Hurry said. “He already has the critical relationships established within the Air Logistics Complex and Air Base Wing which will help take this team to even greater heights.”

Hurry challenged Smith to build on his success at the 748th, and to bring that spirit of innovation to DLA to build upon the successes of an already amazing team. 

In closing, she charged Smith and the Ogden team to always keep the warfighter first, to know they are the reason we exist and to inspire excellence through teamwork and relationship building. 

As Smith took to the podium, he thanked Lockert for his teamwork as a fellow supply chain practitioner over the last two years and for helping him get up-to-speed for this command. 

“It's evident DLA Aviation at Ogden is leaning forward and getting results for the warfighter and I’m committed to building on this record of success,” he said. 

He said as a supply chain teammate, it’s been his pleasure to work with them on issues of common interest. 

“I’ve witnessed your dedication and seen the results of your expertise and mission focus.  Going forward, we’ll remain focused on keeping our processes and priorities aligned with our customers’ needs,” Smith said.   

“We’ll continue caring for our DLA employees and family members that make up this strong and diverse team,” said Smith.  He went on to say they will maintain a commitment to rigorous training, hold each other accountable for standards compliance, emphasize performance recognition and build team member capacity so they can realize their aspirations.