Tuesday, June 14, 2005
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Air Force Gen. Creech getting honor

Wilbur "Bill" Creech Late general will become namesake of Indian Springs airfield Click image for enlargement.

WASHINGTON -- With the military's growing emphasis on the remotely piloted Predator aircraft, it seemed inevitable that more recognition would follow for the Indian Springs Air Force Auxiliary Field where the revolutionary spy plane has been based.

That day will come Monday, when the once sleepy airfield gets a new name in acknowledgement of its elevated mission.

Air Force and congressional officials confirmed the installation 45 miles northwest of Las Vegas will be renamed Creech Air Force Base, in honor of Gen. Wilbur "Bill" Creech, who was credited with reinventing tactical air training. Creech also was known as the "father of the Thunderbirds" during a 40-year Air Force career, according to officials at the Nellis base.

The new identity "would be a fitting and lasting tribute to honor this visionary Air Force leader while also recognizing the enhanced importance of the facility," said Col. Walter Givhan, commander of the 99th Air Base Wing at Nellis Air Force Base, which oversees Indian Springs' operations.

Creech died in Henderson in September 2003 at age 76 and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Givhan, Gen. John Jumper, the Air Force chief of staff, and Creech's widow, Caroline, are among dignitaries expected to attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Monday at Indian Springs to mark the official change.

Besides the new title, little else will change at Indian Springs, at least not right away, officials said Monday. The airfield houses three Predator reconnaissance squadrons, and there are plans to add a fourth squadron under the command of a special operations unit.

"There won't be any large facility changes except for the name on the gate and the names everywhere," said Capt. Jess Smith, an Air Force spokeswoman at the Pentagon.

As Nellis base commander, Givhan will retain responsibility for operations at Creech Air Force Base, according to 1st Lt. Daniel Dubois, a Nellis spokesman. The Predator squadrons will continue to report to the commander of the 57th Wing, Brig. Gen. Gregory Ihde, Dubois said.

But Air Force leaders and former military officials said it was extraordinary for a small Nevada installation to be designated an Air Force base, a title usually reserved for facilities that house a wing or a major command.

"This was to honor General Creech and his contributions to the Air Force for a number of years, and honestly also to show the significance of the mission there," Smith said.

Dubois said that in making an exception, Air Force brass also noted the Indian Springs base houses the Air Force Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Center of Excellence, a high-profile battle laboratory for Predator command and control that opened in March.

"Creech was one of the fathers of air power," said Napoleon Byars, policy and communications director for the Air Force Association that promotes the branch. "They wouldn't give that name to a facility unless it had a mission that was one to be proud of and one that was important."

A highly decorated warrior in the Korean and Vietnam wars, Creech was a pioneering pilot for the Thunderbirds aerial demonstration team when it was activated at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., in 1953.

The team moved to Nellis Air Force Base in 1956 when it began flying supersonic, F-100 Super Sabres. Over the years, the team has used the skies over the Indian Springs airfield for training.

After the 1982 deadly crashes of four Thunderbird jets at Indian Springs, Creech persuaded Pentagon leaders to keep the team because the Thunderbirds attracted promising pilots and technicians to join the Air Force.

Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., said Creech advocated "forward-looking concepts within the military," making it fitting to attach his name to a Predator base. The 27-foot-long drones have captured public imagination while playing increasingly visible roles in U.S. missions in Bosnia, Afghanistan and Iraq.

In December 2003, a Predator spy plane controlled via satellite from 7,500 miles away at Nellis Air Force Base helped U.S. forces capture Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein at his hideout near Tikrit, Iraq.

The Air Force has 57 Predators, all based out of Indian Springs. Last year, Air Force officials projected an expanded force will include 1,377 military personnel and almost 200 other civilians and contract workers.

An armed version of the Predator, the MQ-1, can fire laser-guided Hellfire missiles at targets from miles away. Eventually, the Air Force will deploy a larger version of the Predator, called the MQ-9 or B-model Predator. The MQ-9s will fire missiles, carry bombs, have larger engines and fly twice as high at twice the speed.

Maj. Gen. Stephen Goldfein, commander of the Air Warfare Center at Nellis Air Force Base, predicted in a March interview that the Predator would propel the Indian Springs field to becoming a full-fledged Air Force station or base with 2,500 personnel. The Air Force was spending $25 million to expand the base this year, and was expected to budget $65 million next year.

According to an Air Force history, Creech flew more than 275 combat missions in Korea and Vietnam. As head of the Tactical Air Command from 1978 to 1984, he improved air training tactics through exercises such as the famous Red Flag games at Nellis.

Staff writer Keith Rogers contributed to this report.