General Flowers presented with Order of the Sword

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Clinton Atkins
  • Air Education and Training Command Public Affairs
JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas (AFNS) --  The enlisted men and women of Air Education and Training Command presented retired Maj. Gen. Alfred K. Flowers with the Order of the Sword during a ceremony April 6 here.

Before his retirement in November, Flowers served as the deputy assistant for Budget at the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Management and Comptroller in Washington D.C. He is the longest serving military member in Defense Department history with more than 46 years on active duty at the time of his retirement. Flowers served as an enlisted Airman for more than 13 years and was a master sergeant select before commissioning.

The Order of the Sword was established by the Air Force enlisted force to recognize and honor senior military officers and civilian equivalents. Its history and approval process are laid out formally in Air Force Instruction 36-2824, Order of the Sword Programs. Noncommissioned officers bestow the honor for conspicuous and significant contributions to the welfare and prestige of the Air Force enlisted force, mission effectiveness and the overall military establishment.

"This is the highest level of recognition that the enlisted force can bestow upon anyone," said AETC Command Chief Master Sgt. James Cody.

"Without question, what General Flowers has contributed to the enlisted force throughout his career, specifically for us in AETC, as the 2nd Air Force commander and then as he moved on to be the Air Force (financial manager), has certainly furthered their development, furthered their ability to meet the demands and needs of our nation," he said.

As the 2nd Air Force commander, he played a key role in the development and implementation of the new Basic Military Training, which includes the Basic Expeditionary Airman Skills Training, better known as the BEAST, where trainees learn valuable combat and deployment skills.

During his last assignment in Washington D.C., Flowers continued to be an advocate for the enlisted force by finding resources and money to support programs such as professional military education.

Flowers is the seventh person in AETC history to be selected for the Order of the Sword.

"I'm honored that the noncommissioned officers selected me to receive this and I'm humbled by the experience," he said. "This is as good as it gets."

Flowers said he attributes his success to the thousands of men and women who helped him throughout his career.

"I cannot make myself successful," he said. "I'm not smart enough, I'm not good enough. It's the men and women that surrounded me that made me as successful as I became."