Linsenmeyer new 916th commander
By Kenneth Fine
Published in News on May 27, 2007 2:00 AM
Col. Stephen "Fritz" Linsenmeyer remembers the first time he set foot on Seymour Johnson Air Force Base -- it was the fall of 1990, shortly after deployments that saw most of the F-15s and KC-10s that frequented the flight line leave for war.
"The community's support both to those who had deployed and the families of those they left behind was really amazing," he said.
So as 916th Air Refueling Wing Commander Col. Paul Sykes prepares for his July 26 retirement, the former Team Seymour airman, Linsenmeyer, is looking forward to coming back to a community he loves and taking the reins of his former wing.
Currently the commander of the 434th Air Refueling Wing's Operations Group at Grissom Air Reserve Base in Indiana, Linsenmeyer has officially been named Sykes' replacement and said he and his family are anxious to come back to a community they have followed since their departure from it in the early 1990s.
"The entire Linsenmeyer family ... we are thrilled to have the opportunity to return to Goldsboro and Seymour Johnson," he said. "Over the past 14 years since we were last stationed here, I've followed the success stories -- from both the reserve and active duty -- that have come out of Seymour Johnson, and am delighted to have the chance to be a part of the community and the base once again."
Linsenmeyer said he is particularly proud to help lead the airmen of the 916th, a group he characterizes as some of the best the U.S. military has to offer.
"The 916th Air Refueling Wing has a great reputation in the Air Force Reserve Command as a wing that gets things done professionally and with a great 'Can do!' attitude," he said.
"I'm looking forward to continuing that spirit and tradition."
Linsenmeyer is a command pilot with more than 3,800 hours in the air to date. During his last stint at Seymour Johnson, he served as a KC-10A pilot and instructor pilot.
As Operations Group commander at Grissom, Linsen-meyer is responsible for the day-to-day operational training and overall management of two KC-135R flying squadrons and an operations support squadron.
Making the move with the colonel will be his wife, Judi, and their children -- son, incoming high school senior Stephen III and daughter, college senior Stephanie.