434th MXG officer makes 'full-bird' Published Nov. 17, 2011 By By Tech. Sgt. Mark R. W. Orders-Woempner 434 ARW Public Affairs GRISSOM AIR RESERVE BASE, Ind. -- Rooted in tradition as old as Rome itself, the rank of colonel is one that has not only commanded men throughout generations, but still commands respect today. Arthur L. Van Houten III was promoted to the rank of colonel in front of family, friends, colleagues and peers during a special ceremony held here during a recent unit training assembly. Van Houten served as the 434th Maintenance Group deputy commander until his promotion. He will now serve as the senior individual mobilization augmentee for the 402nd Maintenance Wing commander at Robins Air Force Base, Ga. The 402nd MXW provides depot maintenance, engineering support and software development to major weapon systems including F-15s, C-5s, C-130s, C-17s and special operations aircraft. Around 1505 the Spanish King Ferdinand reorganized part of his army into twenty units called colunelas. These consisted of about 1,000 to 1250 men further organized into companies with their commander being named a coronel. The French, and later the British, adopted the title, and although initially retaining the original Spanish pronunciation, the British soon used the pronunciation of 'kernel' we're familiar with today. U.S. military colonels rank above a lieutenant colonel and below a brigadier general. The modern day insignia for a colonel is a silver eagle with a U.S. shield on its chest and holding an olive branch in one talon and a bundle of arrows in the other. The eagle insignia led to the informal term 'full bird colonel.' The 434th MXG is part of the 434th Air Refueling Wing, the largest KC-135R Stratotanker unit in the Air Force Reserve Command. Stay connected with the 434th ARW on Facebook and Twitter.
