Photos 1 of 3 Gen. Stephen R. Lorenz, commander of Air Education and Training Command, hands the 2nd Air Force flag to Maj. Gen. Mary Kay Hertog during the change of command ceremony Sept. 9, 2009, at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss. General Hertog took command of 2nd Air Force from Maj. Gen. Alfred Flowers. (U.S. Air Force photo) Download HiRes Maj. Gen. Hertog assumes command of 2nd Air Force Posted 9/9/2009 By Angela Cutrer 81st Training Wing Public Affairs KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- When Maj. Gen. Mary Kay Hertog assumed command of 2nd Air Force at Keesler Air Force Base Sept. 9 from Maj. Gen. Alfred Flowers, Gen. Stephen R. Lorenz called the two generals "two of the finest leaders the Air Force has known." "When I meet with Airmen, I always tell them 'you're the next great generation' and it's true," said General Lorenz, Air Education and Training Command commander, during the change of command. "With the training, professionalism, pride and values the 2nd Air Force instills in them, great Americans are born, and they are the heart and soul of the Air Force. "Your watch is full of outstanding accomplishments and highlights, and your fingerprints are etched upon Airmen's lives across the command," he told General Flowers. Second Air Force is the AETC organization that oversees technical and combat training for 250,000 students annually. General Flowers, the first career finance and budget officer to command a numbered Air Force, is heading to the Pentagon as Air Force budget director. General Hertog, accompanied by her husband, Herm Hertog, a retired chief master sergeant, smiled when General Lorenz commented that "success is a family business" for the Hertogs. "I am honored and thrilled to be home again in 2nd Air Force," General Hertog said. "I look forward to candid feedback about our training, because every aspect of training supports the Air Force. We train and graduate 250,000 students a year, but it's not just training that we do; we provide leaders." General Hertog is a career security forces officer whose most recent assignment was director of the Air Force's security forces. She has worked at the unit, major command and Air Staff level in various positions, including commanding several large security forces units and a technical training group. Prior to her assignment in Washington, D.C., she was commander of the 37th Training Wing at Lackland AFB, Texas, one of the largest training wings in the Air Force. General Lorenz welcomed General Hertog "back into the AETC family" with the comment that, "The chisel is now in your hands; the stone is before you." General Hertog replied, "It all starts here. Training helps determine our future because leadership makes a difference. I thank you for the honor and the privilege."

Commander hopes not to be just first, but also, best

(www.sunherald.com)

BILOXI (June 21, 2009) — While Maj. Gen. Mary Kay Hertog is the first female to command any of the numbered Air Forces at bases around the world, that’s not the achievement she hopes will earn her accolades.

"It's not about being the first, it's about doing the best I can," she said.

MAJOR GENERAL MARY KAY HERTOG Maj. Gen. Mary Kay Hertog is the Commander, 2nd Air Force, Keesler Air Force Base, Miss. She is responsible for the development, oversight, and direction of all operational aspects of basic military training, initial skills training, and advanced technical training for the Air Force enlisted force and support officers. Second Air Force provides training in more than 250 Air Force specialties through 2,500 courses graduating 245,000 Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, and international students annually in diverse areas. These areas include aircraft maintenance, civil engineering, medical, computer, avionics, security forces, space and missile operations/maintenance, and multiple intelligence disciplines. The command includes training wings at Keesler AFB; Sheppard, Lackland, and Goodfellow AFBs, Texas; a training group at Vandenberg AFB, Calif.; and a network of 92 field training units around the world. Second Air Force also oversees all Air Force Airmen throughout the Joint Expeditionary Tasking/Individual Augmentee training pipeline at Army training sites across the country and provides a 24-hour, 7-day operations center for pre- and post-deployment support. General Hertog entered the Air Force in 1978 as an ROTC distinguished graduate. As a career security forces officer, she has worked at unit, major command, and Air Staff level in various positions, to include commanding several large security forces units, a technical training group, and one of the largest training wings in the Air Force at Lackland AFB, Texas. Prior to her current assignment, she was Director of Security Forces, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. EDUCATION 1978 Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio 1982 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Ala. 1985 Master of Arts degree in industrial psychology, Webster University, Mo. 1991 Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala. 1996 Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala. ASSIGNMENTS 1. January 1978 - June 1981, officer shift commander, 1608th Security Police Squadron, Kirtland AFB, N.M. 2. July 1981 - February 1983, operations officer, 63rd Security Police Squadron, Norton AFB, Calif. 3. February 1983 - July 1984, Chief, Nuclear Security Branch, and executive officer, Security Police, Headquarters Military Airlift Command, Scott AFB, Ill. 4. July 1984 - August 1987, operations officer and Commander, 554th Security Support Squadron, Nellis AFB, Nev. 5. August 1987 - August 1990, Chief, Law Enforcement and Antiterrorism Division, and Chief, Plans and Resources Division, Security Police, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Hickam AFB, Hawaii 6. August 1990 - June 1991, student, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala. 7. June 1991 - July 1995, Air Staff action officer, Security Police, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. 8. July 1995 - June 1996, student, Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala. 9. July 1996 - July 1999, Commander, 377th Security Forces Squadron, Kirtland AFB, N.M. 10. August 1999 - June 2000, Commander, 86th Security Forces Squadron, Ramstein Air Base, Germany 11. June 2000 - July 2002, Commander, 37th Training Group, Lackland AFB, Texas 12. July 2002 - June 2004, Director of Security Forces, Air Combat Command, Langley AFB, Va. 13. June 2004 - June 2006, Commander, 37th Training Wing, Lackland AFB, Texas 14. June 2006 - September 2009, Director of Security Forces, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. 15. September 2009 - present, Commander, 2nd Air Force, Keesler AFB, Miss. MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS Distinguished Service Medal Legion of Merit with two oak leaf clusters Meritorious Service Medal with silver oak leaf cluster Air Force Commendation Medal with two oak leaf clusters Air Force Achievement Medal Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with silver oak leaf cluster Air Force Organizational Excellence Award with oak leaf cluster Air Force Recognition Ribbon with oak leaf cluster Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal Humanitarian Service Medal EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION Second Lieutenant May 7, 1978 First Lieutenant Nov. 24, 1980 Captain Nov. 24, 1982 Major Dec. 1, 1988 Lieutenant Colonel March 1, 1994 Colonel Jan. 1, 2000 Brigadier General Jan. 1, 2006 Major General May 7, 2009 (Current as of February 2010)