Photo By Brittany Trumbull | The official team (left to right) Charles Bowery, Maj. Gen. Michael C. McCurry, Sandra...... read more read more
FORT NOVOSEL, Ala.--History, when left to the textbooks, can teach; but when it’s a hands-on experience, it can transform. Fort Novosel recently opened the William A. Howell Training Support Facility (TSF), adjacent to the U.S. Army Aviation Museum, to transform the educational landscape for future soldiers on Fort Novosel.
The fourth TSF in the Army Museum system was designed in 2016, broke ground on Fort Novosel in Sept. 2019 and officially opened the doors on the Army Aviation branch 41st birthday, April 12.
Charles Bowery, United States Army Center of Military History Executive Officer, opened the ceremony by sharing his personal connection to the branch.
“Opening new facilities is one of the best parts of my job,” said Bowery. “This one is especially close to home for me, because I am a retired Army Aviator and proud of it. I’ve spent much of my career living and training here in the Wiregrass.”
The Army Museums are not designed for soldiers to conduct training and educational activities on the historical systems, according to Bowery. “We envision the TSFs as unique spaces that are focused on soldier learning, using the technologies of the past to give the soldiers of today a sense of context for the systems that they employ. We believe this will improve their employment of these systems, their faith in the equipment that the Army gives them, and their resiliency in accomplishing their missions.”
Since its beginning in 1964, under the curation of William A. Howell, the Army Aviation Museum has safeguarded the world’s most significant collection of rotary wing aviation artifacts, according to Bowery. The size of the collection exceeded the museums storage capacity, which resulted in challenges for preservation and maintenance.
Bob Mitchell, director of the Army Aviation Museum, played a large role in the final design and implementation of the TSF.
“Bob and the team here have designed the interior to support systems-based education,” said Bowery. “My challenge to the Aviation Center of Excellence is to plan for a TSF component for every course that is taught here at Fort Novosel. And I know they will accomplish that.”
Another dimension of the plans for the TSF is to be a hub for Fort Novosel and USAACE community engagement through school groups, community groups and political leadership visits to the installation. The museum plans to host quarterly open house days for the public to visit the facilities and dive deeper into Army Aviation history.
Bowery continued, “I want you to see this as your museum. With an emphasis on ‘your.’ The professionals at the Center for Military History are here to manage it behind the scenes. It's like a duck paddling on the water. We don’t want you to worry about what goes on beneath the surface, we want you to see the excellence that happens above the surface in your TSF.”
Maj. Gen. Michael C. McCurry, U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence and Fort Novosel commanding general, informed the audience of the history behind the namesake of the TSF, retired Lt. Col. William A. Howell.
“Howell was a distinguished soldier, aviator, and the first civilian curator at the Army Aviation Museum here on Fort Novosel,” said McCurry. “He served valiantly for 26 years on active duty, in WWI and Korea. He achieved qualification of over 20 different aircraft, fixed and rotary wing, logging over 5000 hours.”
The William A. Howell TSF is a State-of-the-art climate-controlled environment that insures the longevity of the aviation machines and the preservation of the technologies and artifacts. Many of the artifacts on display, some of which were only good ideas at the time, had limited development, according to McCurry.
“When you fast forward many years you see them in today’s technology. Those ideas became possible. It’s important for us to preserve those ideas and without a doubt, this facility will help us do that,” said McCurry.
People from all walks of life can now come and see the messages of Army Aviation history at the TSF during the open house days. “Soldiers training on Fort Novosel, now and in the future, use the facility to learn about aviation heritage, culture and the sacred trust of the soldier on the ground,” said McCurry.
The TSF has a specific classroom dedicated to teaching historical studies to the new aviation students as part of their professional development.
“Our aviation students must know from where they came, and the service and sacrifice of those that came before them,” said McCurry.
Mitchell spoke about the significance of naming the building after Howell.
“They are a local Alabama family that are important to the community. We are proud to have them here in attendance today and it just makes the whole event that much more special.”
The official ribbon cutting team consisted of McCurry, Bowery, Mitchell, and Sandra Howell Kee, Howell’s sister.
After cutting of the ribbon and unveiling the official sign, members of the audience entered the facility to a ceremonial cake cutting to celebrate the Army Aviation Branch birthday.
Looking into the opened hanger door filled with living history of the Army Aviation branch, Mitchell said, “If you don’t know your history, you are probably doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past.”
| Date Taken: | 04.12.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 04.16.2024 10:43 |
| Story ID: | 468629 |
| Location: | FORT NOVOSEL, AL, US |
| Web Views: | 28 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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