Before flying to an unfamiliar airfield, pilots try to obtain as much information as possible.

They rely on this information to give them an accurate picture of what they can expect when they arrive.

When Col. Mark C. Nowland found out he would become commander of the 71st Flying Training Wing at Vance Air Force Base, he tried to learn as much about the base, and Enid, as he could.

And when he arrived, he said, he learned the information he had re-ceived was somewhat less than accurate.

“Talking to a lot of pilots, a lot of people had said, ‘There’s not much out there, you’re kind of in the middle of Oklahoma,’” Nowland said. “I got here and I said, ‘Holy mackerel, there’s everything here.’ My impression ultimately is that this is a little, blessed community.”

Nowland became wing commander at Vance July 11 after spending just more than a year as vice commander of 48th Fighter Wing at Royal Air Force Lakenheath, England. Having lived overseas made him appreciate Enid even more, he said.

“When you come back to America and you see all the resources that we have, you realize what a blessed nation we are,” Nowland said. “And Enid even more so, because of the tight-knit community and the people that I’ve met. They’re extremely nice, they are forthcoming and are generally concerned about how you are doing.”

In talking with Air Education and Training Command leadership prior to coming to Vance, as well as one of his mentors, Brig. Gen. John Hesterman, his boss at Lakenheath, Nowland was made aware of the unique relationship between Enid and Vance.

“They all, universally, commented that we have one of the strongest, one of the best civil-military relations,” Nowland said. “My impression since I’ve been here is they’re absolutely correct.”

Nowland said one of his goals is to improve that relationship.

“The key word there is relationship,” Nowland said. “Relationship is all about communicating to each other and taking the time to talk, and, more importantly, listen to each other.”

Vance’s new leader spent time as an instructor pilot both in the T-37 and F-15, and said he is excited to be back in a teaching environment.

“Being back in pilot training is just plain fun,” Nowland said. “I absolutely love to fly.”

He said he hopes to fly three times a week.

He spent two years as a First Assignment Instructor Pilot in the T-37 at Williams AFB, Ariz., then taught in the T-37 at Randolph AFB, Texas, and in the F-15 at Langley AFB, Va. But he sees his role as wing commander as much larger.

“Part of my job is to constantly educate people, kind of on their responsibilities and what is expected of them,” he said.

Often, Nowland said, people have what he terms an “expectation disconnect.”

“They anticipate one thing is going to happen, then something else happens,” he said.

Nowland comes to Vance at a challenging time. Work continues on planning the Partners in the Sky Open House and Air Show, scheduled Oct. 4, which is expected to be the biggest open house and air show ever held at Vance. Early next year, the base will undergo an Operational Readiness Inspection, a top-to-bottom review of everything that goes on at the base. Plus, the base is going through physical changes, with more than $60 million in ongoing construction, the most since the base was built in the early 1940s.

“I think it’s absolutely great timing, personally,” he said. “I just have the unique opportunity to maybe get out and do a little guiding and steering, use my expertise to help focus, sharpen the saw a little bit so we can make that execution a little bit better.”

The heat of an Oklahoma summer is a bit of an adjustment from the relative cool of southeast England, but Nowland’s family, his wife, Kristan, and children, Nicholas, Natalie and Isabella, are adjusting well to life in Enid.

“My family is excited to be here,” Nowland said. “They really liked England. Coming to Enid, at first they were apprehensive but they’ve had a warm welcome, they’ve made some friends on base already.”