1st Avn. Bde. welcomes new commander

By Nathan Pfau, Army Flier Staff WriterJune 26, 2015

1st Avn. Bde. welcomes new commander
Col. Woodard B. Hopkins III, 1st Aviation Brigade commander, assumes command from Col. Shawn Prickett as he accepts the unit colors from Maj. Gen. Michael D. Lundy, U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence and Fort Rucker commanding general, during a ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT RUCKER, Ala. (June 26, 2015) -- A new leader assumed command of the 1st Aviation Brigade as hundreds of Soldiers stood in formation braving the summer heat to welcome their new commander.

Col. Woodard B. Hopkins III assumed command of the brigade from Col. Shawn Prickett during a change of command ceremony on Howze Field June 23.

Maj. Gen. Michael D. Lundy, U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence and Fort Rucker commanding general, bid farewell to Prickett, thanking him for his leadership and guidance to the Soldiers, as well as expressing his full confidence in the new commander.

"As the Pricketts leave our formation, it's absolutely astounding what they've accomplished in the two years they've been in command," said the commanding general during the ceremony. "As you look at this brigade and the mission that it does, a lot of people don't understand how complex it is. Every mission this brigade does, they do it without fail and they excelled under Shawn Prickett's leadership. Thank you for all that you've done. You've brought every single Soldier into our Branch in the last two years, and that legacy will continue over the next 30 years."

That legacy includes more than 4,000 Soldiers in the brigade who are distributed between Fort Rucker and Fort Huachuca, Arizona, said Lundy, adding that undertaking the task of leading the brigade is a huge responsibility. The brigade also runs the Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape course, the Helicopter Overwater Survival Training, the Warrant Officer Basic Course, the Basic Officer Leader Course, the Warrant Officer Advanced Course and the Captains Career Course.

"The good news is we have the Hopkins (family) coming in. I have the utmost confidence that (he) and (his wife), Kelly, are going to be the great Army family that we've got and continue to set that great example, so I know the Golden Hawks are in great hands. I welcome you to our family and I welcome you to our community, and I look forward to wearing you out like I've worn Shawn out over the last two years."

Hopkins returns to Fort Rucker from his most recent assignment at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, where he served as the branch chief for the Strategy, Plans and Policy Directorate for U.S. Central Command.

He was commissioned into the Army in 1991 as a second lieutenant and brings a wealth of leadership experience having served in numerous assignments including brigade S4 for 82nd Aviation Regiment, 5th Infantry Division; commander of Troop E, 1st Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment; executive officer for the 603rd Aviation Support Battalion; and as a congressional liaison for the Army.

He has served in multiple deployments, including a tour in Bosnia in 1998, a tour in Iraq in 2005 and two tours in Afghanistan.

"It is with great pride and excitement that Kelly and I return to the Wiregrass to serve the Soldiers and civilians of the 1st Aviation Brigade," said Hopkins. "We look forward to working with the Aviation team here at the home of Army Aviation. To the Soldiers of the Golden Hawk Brigade, you look great, and I'm extremely humbled to join your team and look forward to getting to know you and the very diverse missions that we execute in the Aviation Branch."

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U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence