New Delaware commander visits TT

Timmons recently visited Minister of National Security Edmund Dillon and Chief of Defence Staff Brigadier Rodney Smart and other senior officials.

Timmons is Delaware’s first female twostar general and first female Adjutant General.

In February she replaced her predecessor Frank Vavala who retired after 18 years.

While having visited twice before as Assistant Adjutant General for Air, Timmons said visiting now was one of the things at the top of her to-do list in her new role in order to promise a continuation of the TT/US relationship, said a United States Embassy statement yesterday.

“We greatly value our relationship and we look forward to advancing and maturing the nature of our engagements,” Timmons said.

“This is my initial senior leadership engagement.

We will look at issues that are of mutual interest between the TTDF (TT Defence Force) and the DNG.” Timmons said over the past decade the TTDF and DNG have learned a lot from each other and intend to continue that partnership by sharing their individual experience and expertise.

The DNG and the TTDF have enjoyed a partnership under the Guard’s State Partnership Program which provides opportunities for joint training and subject matter expert exchanges on a variety of topics. These include flight safety, engineering and counter drug operations, and personnel issues such as professional development, family support, and force support programs.

Asked about being a woman leading the DNG, she said: “It is a big deal because it’s another barrier getting knocked down.

It’s good to recognise it and not because you are patting Carol Timmons on the back, but it shows there is .

opportunity for other women and men and anybody can rise to this level in the DNG.” She said the fact that women are in the military shows diversity in gender and race and improves overall effectiveness.

She added that good qualifications are also critical to sustaining organisational effectiveness.

Timmons recently celebrated her 40th year in the military having joined after high school.

Initially enlisting in the Air National Guard, she said she wanted to fly but back then women weren’t allowed. However she flew helicopters in the Army National Guard for four years, later deployed in Desert Shield/Desert Storm flying large cargo jets, and ultimately returned to the Air National Guard where she ascended through the ranks as both pilot and leader to become the top military officer in the State.