'Not a good day for the air force' as trusted leader charged with murder

By David Pugliese,
Ottawa Citizen
February 9, 2010


He was the trusted "mayor" overseeing the lives of more than 3,500 military and civilian staff.

Col. Russell Williams, the commander of 8 Wing at Canadian Forces Base Trenton was also a high profile community member in the Ontario region and hand-picked by the senior military leadership to run one of the country's largest air force installations.

That responsibility, and the severity of the criminal charges Williams now faces, has members of the military searching vainly for answers about the murder cases involving the respected officer.

On Sunday, Williams, 46, was arrested in Ottawa and charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of forcible confinement and two counts of break and enter and sexual assault.

"This is the person that everyone in the Wing looks up to," said Keith McDonald, a retired air force major general who met Williams for the first time during a Senate committee trip to the base in November. "This is a person we saw on television three weeks ago with the minister of national defence. He's the guy who commands the base, who has to make sure they treat with dignity the return of fallen soldiers (from Afghanistan."

Base commanders have a lot of power in the installations they oversee and are seen as the public face of the military in nearby communities.

According to the air force, CFB Trenton is at the forefront of Canadian military aviation with its fleet of tactical transport and search-and-rescue aircraft. Daily flights to the four corners of the globe take off from or arrive at the base, also known to Canadians as the site where the bodies of soldiers killed in Afghanistan first arrive home.

Located on the shores of Lake Ontario, 2,640 regular force members, 620 reservists and 600 civilian staff work at the base.

McDonald, who was a base commander in Germany, said very few officers are eventually selected to run such a base.

"You're looking at a group of folks who have done well in their careers, who have warranted the trust, and it is a big trust," he added. "You are responsible for the military people and providing them with a working environment where they want to come to work every day.

"That job is probably the best job you're going to have as your own boss," McDonald added. "You are responsible for everything that goes on at that Wing, responsible for all of the flying operations, responsible for support to all of the folks there."

McDonald said he has never heard of this type of incident happening in the Canadian Forces to an individual with such a high rank. "It definitely will impact on how people look at the air force," he said. "It's not a good day for the air force."

Liberal Senator Colin Kenny, chairman of the senate defence committee, said he and other committee members met Russell on Nov. 18 during a brief visit to the base.

"The guy was really impressive," said Kenny. "He looked like a really clean-cut comer. We left the place thinking it was a big complex place with a big capable guy running it."

Kenny said Russell told the committee he was dealing with issues, ranging from finding enough personnel to do various jobs to figuring out how to house giant C-17 transport planes located at CFB Trenton.

Kenny noted the importance of the role of a base commander since such individuals ensure that military personnel are cared for and that relations with the surrounding community are run smoothly. "They handle the housing," Kenny said. "They would convene court martials if they were needed. They are it on a base."

"A guy like him can also have a huge impact on the health of the towns nearby, just because he's the boss of so many people earning so much money," Kenny added.

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