Col. Ayers Returns to Minot

Minot Air Force Base Is Familiar Territory

Col. Bryson S. Ayers returned to Minot Air Force Base last summer to command the 5th Operations Group, continuing a career and family connection to military aviation while renewing ties to the base and community.

Col. Ayers grandfather was a Marine and flew Corsairs and Wildcats in WWII, and then Corsairs in Korea. His father was stationed at Minot Air Force Base from 1984-1989 and was a member of the 23^rd Bomb Squadron. “Yep, my father was a Baron, too…” according to Col. Ayers.

Col. Ayers and his family returned to Minot Air Force Base last summer where Col. Ayers became the Commander of the 5^th Operations Group. It was 2018 when Ayers first served as Assistant Director of Operations, 23d Bomb Squadron, Minot AFB, N.D. In 2019 he became the Director of Operations for the 23^rd Bomb Squadron, followed by a 1-year tenure as Deputy Commander of the 5^th Operations group in 2020, then Commander of the 69^th Bomb Squadron, a position he held until December of 2023. His time in Minot would conclude in July of 2023 after he was Deputy Commander of the 5^th Operations Group.

Even though both his grandfather and father were pilots, his father being a Baron of the 23^rd Bomb Squadron, Ayers didn’t feel any pressure and “I wasn’t planning on following in the footsteps of my father, it just kind of worked out that way. I didn’t pick the B-52, the B-52 picked me” according to Ayers. “I enjoyed the service aspect of it (being in the military) and the adventure aspect of it as a kid. I wanted to be able to fly and serve my country in that manner.”

After Serving In Minot The First Time
The next stops for the Ayers family were in Oak Ridge, Tennessee and then two years at The Pentagon. In DC where the Ayers family got to see and experience a lot. “You know on a random Saturday I could say to the kids, let’s go to the Mall” Ayers shared “and we’re going to check out The Constitution, and that was really cool. There are things that you can only see and do in DC. But I can honestly say that we are happy to be back in Minot for sure.”
           
Meeting The Sheriff
 “How did it all get started? Well, I came here in 2018 and he was the Commander of the 23^rd and I was the Assistant Director of Operations. And then he asked me to be the Director of Operations. It’s been nice because back then we talked all the time, and we still today talk all the time to be sure we are on the same page. What we see as important is very similar.”

The Burrell/Ayers relationship continued even after Ayers became Commander of the 69^th Bomb Squadron and Burrell moved to the Pentagon. Their roles would reverse a bit as Ayers found himself at The Pentagon and Burrell was Commander of the 5^th Ops Group at Minot AFB. “And as far as the relationship today? Now I’m Commander of the OG (5^th Ops Group) and he’s my boss, but our relationship hasn’t changed. We still talk about, like, what’s ahead.”

A Different World
What is different for Airmen serving today compared with when Ayers first served? “The world has certainly gotten more complex,” Ayers said. “It’s different today, and it never really goes back to where it was. What we put into it changes it forever. When I joined in 2004, the focus was the global war on terror. Today, as we maintain a continuous bomber presence, that focus has changed. The B-52 has also changed significantly in what it can do. From my time as a first lieutenant to today, some things have stayed the same and many others have changed. The culture remains largely the same, with a few nuances, but we expect more of our young people now than we did when I was growing up. I am often impressed by how much more young Airmen going through nuclear certification know today than I knew when I completed it 20 years ago. I suspect that, 20 years from now, they will look at a young lieutenant and be equally surprised by what that officer knows.”

The Depth of the Mission
How do young Airmen arriving at Minot Air Force Base view the mission and the community? “You choose your attitude,” Ayers said. “Minot Air Force Base presents challenging conditions that are not found everywhere, but much depends on how Airmen approach the mission. They can show one another that the work can be challenging and still be enjoyable. Airmen also take on the personality of their commanders quickly. All three of my commanders have a fantastic attitude about the B-52, Minot Air Force Base, and the Minot community, and that attitude filters down to the young Airmen. A good attitude is infectious. How well we perform the mission is also connected to how well we treat our people. Morale is very important. It comes from strong discipline, excellence in the task at hand, and doing hard things together. During a debrief, Airmen recognize that they have accomplished something difficult as a team—something not everyone can do—and that has a tremendous effect on morale.”

The Ayers Family
Col. Ayers and his spouse, April, met while attending high school in Germany. “We have five kids,” Ayers said. Addison, 16, attends Minot North High School and loves choir. Eleanor, 13, attends Memorial Middle School and ran cross-country with the Minot North team, even though she is only an eighth grader. Nataly, 11, also attends Memorial Middle School and enjoys jiu-jitsu. Samuel, 8, is a strong student who is interested in wrestling and soccer. Gabriel, 5, was born in Minot, is outgoing, and, as Ayers put it, “is kind of that kid that everyone likes.”