JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Va. -- The 192nd Wing, Virginia Air National Guard, welcomed Col. Manaal I. Burge as the new commander of the 192nd Mission Support Group during a change of command ceremony Jan. 6, 2024, at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, in Hampton, Virginia.
Col. Brock E. Lange, 192nd Wing commander, presided over the ceremony where Col. David R. Lands relinquished command of the 192nd MSG to Burge.
"Airmen of the Mission Support Group, thank you for caring for each other,” said Lands. “It has been my honor to serve with you, and I have enjoyed the opportunity to care and develop you and our mission capabilities. Your commitment to our nation and commonwealth is appreciated and will not be taken for granted. Please remember to care for one another and refine the culture of wingman care that is vital to our continued success.”
Lands received the Legion of Merit for 'exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services' and will continue to serve as the VaANG director of staff at Joint Force Headquarters, Richmond, Virginia, but bid his farewell to the members of MSG and welcomed Burge into the new role.
"Col. Burge, Pipper, welcome to Virginia and the VaANG,” said Lands. “You are joining a united leadership team that is passionate and empathetic about caring for Airmen and their families, while ensuring we are capable of meeting mission requirements. I’m excited for you and the MSG Welcome to the team!”
Burge entered the U.S. Air Force in December 2000 through Air Force ROTC Detachment 157 at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida. She began Joint Strike Undergraduate Navigator School in Pensacola, Florida, and was selected to be a weapons systems officer in the F-15E Strike Eagle. She has 1800+ hours in the F-15E of which over 800 was in combat. She has served as an officer in the active-duty Air Force and the Air National Guard, and as a civilian defense contractor. In 2011, she transitioned to the ANG after spending more than 10 years on active duty. Burge is a decorated combat leader with five deployments and has served at every level from tactical to strategic to include squadron command.
Previously, she served as the senior ANG policy advisor to the Reserve Forces Policy Board, Office of the Secretary of Defense in Washington, D.C. The Reserve Forces Policy Board serves as an independent adviser to the Secretary of Defense, providing advice and recommendations to the Secretary on strategies, policies, and practices designed to improve and enhance the capabilities, efficiency, and effectiveness of the seven reserve components.
"To all those people that helped me get to where I am today, the only thing I can offer you in return is more hard work,” said Burge. “And to those of you new to me, I challenge you to be excellent, find someone in your own lives to mentor. Competence, character and community are the bedrocks of a healthy life and mission.”
As commander of the 192nd MSG, Burge will lead the 192nd Security Forces Squadron, the 192nd Support Squadron, and the 203rd Rapid Engineer Deployable Heavy Operational Repair Squadron Engineers or RED HORSE.
"I am honored to be stepping into the Mission Support Group,” said Burge. “We have such an important and relevant mission! From comm to security forces to RED HORSE to [civil engineering] to support, the rest of the wing depends on us. We enable capabilities on the pointy end of the spear. The Mission Support Group ensures uninterrupted capabilities and resources for both the mission and their families. I know together we continue to serve with competence, character and community. It is truly an honor to be in the Virginia Air National Guard, to serve you as your commander, and to start a new year with you.”