First Official Act on the Military Stage
Nörvenich, 30.10.2009.
As his first official act on the military stage, Minister of Defence Dr. Karl-Theodor Freiherr zu Guttenberg relieved Lieutenant General Klaus-Peter Stieglitz of his duties as Chief of Staff, Air Force. On 29 October, he installed Lieutenant General Aarne Kreuzinger-Janik as Stieglitz’s successor during a military parade at Nörvenich Air Base.
Federal Minister of Defence Dr. Karl-Theodor Freiherr zu Guttenberg handed over command of the Air Force in the presence of the Chief of Staff, Bundeswehr, General Wolfgang Schneiderhan and many guests from Germany and abroad.
“Your strong leadership was decisive in preparing the Air Force for operations abroad in a multinational and joint context,” said Guttenberg and thanked Stieglitz for his “tireless commitment”. “You have rendered outstanding service not only to the Air Force but to the Bundeswehr as a whole,” said zu Guttenberg.
The new Chief of Staff, Air Force, clocked up more than 2,800 flying hours
After heading the Air Force for six years, Lieutenant General Klaus-Peter Stieglitz is now handing over the responsibility and taking retirement. “I must admit that I am reluctant to hang my service cap on the proverbial hook and I am not ashamed that it is quite an emotional moment"
he said after spending 41 years as a soldier. He wished his successor Lieutenant General Aarne Kreuzinger-Janik well with the words “Fortune favours the bold”.
After being appointed to the highest office in the Air Force, General Kreuzinger-Janik is now the 14th Chief of Staff, Air Force. Shortly before, on 26 October, the General had handed over the Air Force Command to Major General Peter Schelzig after three years in office.
A number of assignments as a commander and more than 2,800 flying hours on many different aircraft types as an active pilot mean that Kreuzinger-Janik is well prepared for his new office. “I assure you that I will conduct my office with the requisite care, close interest and prudence”,
he emphasised.
Air Force soldiers from all Air Force units and specialties had lined up at Nörvenich Air Base, the home of Fighter Bomber Wing 31 “Boelcke”. The new Chief of Staff, Air Force, addressed them as follows: “There is one issue that continues to be of utmost importance to me: focusing my care and responsibility on you, the human element of the Air Force system, during the ongoing process of optimisation.”
