REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. - One of Army aviation's "bright minds" bid farewell to colleagues, peers and friends during a retirement ceremony April 30.
Lt. Col. Brian Forrest, outgoing Special Electronic Mission Aircraft product manager, retired from the Army after more than 21 years of active duty military service.
Col. Steven Clark, project manager for Fixed Wing Aircraft, presided over the ceremony and described Forrest as a "true strategic thinker and sage adviser."
"Any of you who have had the opportunity of serving with Brian know that he is a talented officer, a gifted officer and maintainer. Those are simply statements of fact," Clark said.
"The real views that I've come to experience is the depth of which Brian always greets you with a smile, that big confident hello, and even when he has bad news to convey there is that assurance that he projects that you know that he has already analyzed the situation, accounted for the strategic implications, developed mitigating strategies to lessen the consequences, and that he is ready to get his hands dirty and start moving toward accomplishing what needs to be done to mitigate those consequences."
Prior to assuming responsibility as the SEMA product manager, Forrest served in a variety of operational and acquisition assignments. After completing flight school, Forrest served as platoon leader, aviation liaison officer, assistant brigade S1, commanded D Company, 2-501st Aviation Regiment, 1st Armored Division and A Company 127th Aviation Support Battalion and led his Aviation Intermediate Maintenance company into Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
He also served as assistant product manager for both the UH-60A/L Black Hawk and UH-72A Lakota helicopters and as an assistant project manager for training aids, devices, simulators and simulations for Utility Helicopters.
After selection as a Department of Defense congressional fellow, Forrest served within the office of Sen. Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut as a member of the personal staff, subsequently serving within the Office of the Chief, Legislative Liaison managing the Weapons and Tracked Combat Vehicle portfolio as a liaison to Congress. He then deployed as an aviation logistics officer in support of Special Operations Command.
"My time with the Fixed Wing team will main the pinnacle of my career," Forrest said. Choking back words as he reflected on his career, Forrest thanked his family for being the bedrock of his military service. "I consider myself very fortunate to have had my family's support all those years."
Clark enumerated a number of accomplishments under the leadership of Forrest, including the successful development and fielding of a Quick Reaction Capability requirement at the request of then Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel. Within five days after the rapid acquisition authority was signed in April, the effort was on contract.
The SEMA team received a Capabilities Production Document for the Aerial Reconnaissance Low modernization and service program in 2014 and just last month, the team procured six of the nine aircraft for transfer into the program of record "for what will arguably be the most capable manned, tactical, multi-intelligence platform in the DoD," Clark said.
Most remarkably, Clark continued, "the team managed to transition the Enhanced Medium Altitude Reconnaissance and Surveillance System program, from the Engineering, Manufacturing and Development phase, through Milestone C, completed the Individual Key Personnel Training and Limited Users Test on time if not early while contracting the three remaining variants in the EMARSS family. All this while maintaining an in-service fleet at DA readiness rates that well exceed the goals."
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