QUANTICO, Va. -- The next chapter in the storied history of the Office of Special Investigations is being written as Chief Master Sgt. Gregg Gow has been selected as the 17th Command Chief of OSI. The official announcement was made by the Department of the Air Force Jan. 21, 2021.
Chief Gow succeeds OSI’s 16th Command Chief Master Sgt. Karen Beirne-Flint, who is retiring after 28 years of military service, which was also announced by the DAF.
“Today is an amazing day for our command,” wrote OSI Commander, Brig. Gen. Terry L. Bullard, in an email announcing the moves to the OSI Family. “I am proud and honored to be the one to make these announcements. There is no doubt Chief Beirne-Flint has made OSI better, and has made our OSI Family Stronger Together. She has been an advocate for all of us…Chief Gow has long been a champion of our Airmen and has represented them well time and again. I am fully confident he’ll continue that legacy of tireless support to all of our Airmen and their families.”
Chief Gow was honored and humbled to get the support from Chief Beirne-Flint and General Bullard to compete at the Air Force Command Chief’s Board.
“To be selected to join an elite group of chiefs and to be eligible to compete for a command chief position was humbling,” Chief Gow said. “Then the opportunity to serve the men and women of OSI in this new role is an absolute privilege. I’m thankful for the continued trust and confidence from our OSI leaders and I’m blessed to be part of, and to continue to serve, OSI.”
The new Command Chief with more than 26 years service, more than 20 with OSI, has some specific vectors.
“I look forward to working with the new Force Development division to build on the efforts Chief Beirne-Flint accomplished in the development and growth of our total force. I’ll focus on resiliency, and developing our Airmen to be stronger and ready for tomorrow’s fight, which is the essence of our Developing Our 300 initiative. This includes building Airmen that have the skills and knowledge to get after the diverse mission sets of OSI, as well as embracing diversity plus inclusion.
“I intend to focus on our partnerships. Our partners are critical to our success and I want to explore new ways to share information and investigations. We have to be integrated and agile to share information accurately and quickly when responding to the DAF’s needs.”
Chief Gow emphasized the importance of moving toward The OSI We Need.
“The OSI We Need is vital for us to move forward as an organization; to be able to present a force ready to counter the treats to our nation, the Air and Space Forces,” he said. “Our teams know that performance matters in the resolution of our criminal and fraud cases as they impact the service’s readiness. We’ll continue focusing our counterintelligence strategy, building the National Security Detachments, and honing in on operations/campaigns to keep our adversaries at bay and protects our service’s technological and warfighting edge. We’ll also continue to empower our leaders to take calculated risks and be innovative. We will embrace technology and systems to help us do our job better.”
Growing up in North Idaho, he visited several recruiters, and felt the Air Force offered the most to help him achieve his personal goals.
“I wanted to pursue my education while learning something new that gave me structure,” he said. “I joined the Air Force as a personnel specialist. During a deployment I was exposed to OSI and the mission and instantly felt that it was my calling. The diversity of the mission and to solve complex issues attracted me to OSI.”
Meanwhile, Chief Beirne-Flint retires from the command with a sincere appreciation for those she’s served with and her characteristic optimism.
“I’m honored to serve the women and men of OSI, our Department of the Air Force and our nation for the last 28 years,” she said. “As I turn the reins over to, Chief Gow, I can’t help be feel excited for the OSI family. I know I am leaving the Command in the hands of a dynamic, passionate and forward leaning Chief who truly cares about the Airmen and will absolutely take us to the next level.”
The official transition will occur in May 2021.