ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. -- Col. Wayne Dirkes said he was “shocked and humbled” when he received the call informing him that he would be the next commander of Arnold Engineering Development Complex.
The news, however, was met with another reaction – gratitude.
“This is a challenge, the likes of which I’ve never seen so far in my career,” Dirkes said. “But with great challenge comes great opportunity. And this organization is in a really, really neat place in its history.”
Dirkes assumed command of AEDC on June 27. He now leads an organization of more than 3,700 military members, civilians and contractors operating aerospace test capabilities across eight states. The Complex, headquartered at Arnold Air Force Base, provides world-class test and evaluation capabilities that support the development of advanced aerospace systems, from subsonic and hypersonic flight to space-based technologies.
He brings to AEDC more than 25 years of active-duty experience in operational flying, flight test, acquisitions, military education and command.
Dirkes’ Air Force journey began in high school.
“I didn’t have grand ambitions for my life,” he said. “I didn’t have the future mapped out. What I did know is I wanted to go to college, and my parents didn’t have money to send me, so I knew it was on me.”
The high school Dirkes attended had an Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps program and, through that program, he learned the Air Force awarded college scholarships.
“So, I initially joined for the college opportunity, which I think a lot of people can relate to,” he said.
But Dirkes said what is perhaps more interesting is the reason he chose to make the Air Force his career.
“I’m still here 25 years later because I have an opportunity on a daily basis to do some really cool stuff, to work with really neat people,” he said. “I feel like I still have an opportunity to make a difference for America and for the people I work with.”
He earned his Air Force commission in 2001 through the ROTC after receiving his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Norwich University, Vermont.
A command pilot with more than 2,270 flight hours in more than two dozen different aircraft, Dirkes has deployed five times in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Along with combat search and rescue missions, Dirkes also flew rescue missions into New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. He is credited with 180 career “saves” from personnel recovery missions in combat and civil environments.
Through his experiences in everything from combat operations to flight test, Dirkes said he realizes the importance of the work performed across AEDC. Prior to taking command of the Complex, he served as commander of the 704th Test Group, a unit of AEDC headquartered at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico. There, he oversaw flight and ground testing of advanced capabilities.
He added one would be hard-pressed to pick up a warfighting history book without coming across an aircraft or program in which AEDC did not play a part.
“When it comes to warfighting, I’m a huge fan of winning,” Dirkes said. “Our current National Security Strategy calls for America to equip and field the world’s most powerful, lethal and technologically advanced military to protect its interests, deter wars and, if necessary, win them quickly and decisively. AEDC, I think, plays a very, very important role in that. The technologies we develop, the programs we test, the customers we work with, the types of technologies we’re involved with, I look at them as the shot group center of future combat and current combat.
“The weapons, the aircraft, the technologies that AEDC has helped develop over the years have enabled, 100% have enabled, America’s dominance on the global stage of combat.”
On the same day Dirkes became the 34th commander of the Complex, AEDC leadership opened the gates of Arnold AFB for a public open house held to commemorate the 75th anniversary of AEDC and celebrate its history.
While Dirkes said AEDC has a “tremendous past,” he is focused on what lies ahead.
“We have to remember that we have a tremendous future,” he said. “This organization can’t just live on those past successes. I’m very excited about the future.”
Just a little more than a month into his latest assignment, Dirkes said he is still in the “listen and learn” phase and his goals as AEDC commander are a work in progress. Still, he has several already in mind.
President Donald Trump has requested $1.5 trillion for defense in his proposed budget for the 2027 fiscal year. Should the budget pass, AEDC is set to experience a funding windfall. If this comes to fruition, Dirkes wants to ensure these funds are stewarded judiciously.
“When I see that much money as a taxpayer, not only a leader, I want that money to be spent wisely and well,” he said. “For AEDC, that means spending it on what America needs AEDC to spend it on and then executing at a pace that meets our expenditure goals.”
It also seems the Department of War is nearing the end of the adjustment period that arose from the 2025 government civilian workforce reduction, Dirkes said. He would like to see AEDC adjust in preparation for predicted growth in future years.
“When you have a set amount of mission we’re trying to get done, a set amount of people, and all of the sudden you have less people, now you have a gap you’ve got to figure out,” Dirkes said. “Do we take more risks? Do we use technology more effectively? Do we stop doing some things? Those are really hard questions to answer, but I’m looking forward to the next couple of years, making some progress on how we accomplish our current mission with the manpower we have now. That should put us in a good position to be ready for the right kind of growth, if and when, it comes.”
In the face of changing national test demands and acquisition reform, Dirkes said AEDC must remain a vital component of the U.S. warfighting structure and test infrastructure.
“This organization is amazing, but we’ve got to stay relevant,” Dirkes said. “You’ve got to stay at the cutting edge of not only what we’re doing, but who we’re doing it for. That’s a very significant goal, as well.”
This is especially important, Dirkes said, as customers and program managers now have more options for test than at prior points.
“The historical paradigm of test is shifting. America still needs the world-class expertise and test environments that AEDC brings, but we must keep earning the trust of our customers,” Dirkes said. “We need to be future-focused. We need to be doing the best we can at our job and to make America win.
“The thing that’s rattling around my brain is a quote from a book by Cal Newport. The title of the book is ‘So Good They Can’t Ignore You,’ and that’s really what’s kind of jumping out at me. You want a seat at the table? You want to remain relevant? You want programs to come here and test? You want funding to develop new capabilities? We must be so good that this becomes the place people go because they don’t want to go anywhere else. That’s one thing I’d like to have people remember – be so good they can’t ignore you.”