{"id":24038,"date":"2025-07-10T04:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-07-10T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/tullahoma\/?p=24038"},"modified":"2025-07-08T16:16:52","modified_gmt":"2025-07-08T16:16:52","slug":"grant-mizell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/tullahoma\/grant-mizell\/","title":{"rendered":"Col. Grant Mizell: Adventuring in aviation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>WHEN HE joined the Air Force, Col. Grant Mizell dreamed of reaching for the sky. He has always chased adventure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe thought that I could someday fly an airplane was the hook I needed,\u201d Mizell said. \u201cThe thought that I\u2019d break the surly bonds of earth and go chase clouds was pretty neat.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It was a decision that took him from a curious high school graduate to the commander of the Arnold Air Force Base and Arnold Engineering Development Complex (AEDC). He has 30 years of service under his belt, and his command extends to AEDC locations across nine states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mizell started at the Air Force Academy in 1995 and then attended pilot training to fly C-130s \u2014 small but mighty tactical planes. His first operational assignment was in Little Rock, Arkansas, where he completed four combat tours in the Middle East and met his wife, Evelyn. They would later have two children, a son, Kelly, and a daughter, Lorelei.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a young couple, Mizell and his wife were shipped to the 37th Airlift Squadron in Germany. They left behind their families, but were born into a new kind of family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhen you join the military, you have instant friends \u2014 really, an instant family \u2014 who you are going to be with for a long time,\u201d Mizell said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/tullahoma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/3-2-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-24041\" srcset=\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/tullahoma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/3-2-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/tullahoma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/3-2-980x653.jpg 980w, https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/tullahoma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/3-2-480x320.jpg 480w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) and (max-width: 980px) 980px, (min-width: 981px) 1024px, 100vw\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Photo submitted by Grant Mizell<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>In Germany, C-130s were deployed to contingencies in Africa, Bosnia, Kosovo, and the Middle East, transporting UN peacekeepers, medical aid, and military personnel. Mizell enjoyed seeing the world and making a difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mizell then attended test pilot school. Always chasing the next adventure, Mizell moved from Germany to a remote base in the Mojave Desert in California, which was 20 miles from the nearest town. Mizell learned to fly over 30 different aircraft. Set in an area with beautiful weather year-round and a safe distance from civilians, Edwards Air Force Base is the perfect location to test aircraft. It\u2019s dangerous work, but groundbreaking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cAlmost every major \u2018first\u2019 in the history of aviation happened at Edwards Air Force Base, or within 50 miles of it,\u201d Mizell said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/tullahoma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/2-2-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-24042\" srcset=\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/tullahoma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/2-2-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/tullahoma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/2-2-980x653.jpg 980w, https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/tullahoma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/2-2-480x320.jpg 480w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) and (max-width: 980px) 980px, (min-width: 981px) 1024px, 100vw\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Photography by Brooke Snyder<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>A rare opportunity offered C-130 test pilots, including Mizell, the chance to work with the Royal Air Force for two years. Mizell moved to England, where he flew British planes and admired their patience, acceptance, and efficiency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Today, Mizell commands Arnold Air Force Base, a technological hub of aerospace innovation and military testing. It is a critical component of our national security.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cArnold is the epitome of long-term thinking. They built a wonder of the world,\u201d Mizell said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The facility is incredible and is open to the public for tours. But Mizell said the heart of the base is the people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cArnold Air Force Base is the people of Tennessee. Whether you\u2019ve done it in my uniform, or any service, or in a suit and tie, or coveralls, they are all American heroes. They come in every single day and make America a better place,\u201d Mizell said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The base maintains the public Wattendorf Highway and opens huge portions of its property for hunting and fishing. It also conducts STEM outreach in schools. Mizell continually leads Arnold Air Force Base to new heights while nurturing the community here in Tullahoma. <strong>GN<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>WHEN HE joined the Air Force, Col. Grant Mizell dreamed of reaching for the sky. He has always chased adventure. \u201cThe thought that I could someday fly an airplane was the hook I needed,\u201d Mizell said. \u201cThe thought that I\u2019d break the surly bonds of earth and go chase clouds was pretty neat.\u201d It was [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":24040,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24038","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cover"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Col. 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He has always chased adventure. \u201cThe thought that I could someday fly an airplane was the hook I needed,\u201d Mizell said. \u201cThe thought that I\u2019d break the surly bonds of earth and go chase clouds was pretty neat.\u201d It was [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/tullahoma\/grant-mizell\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Tullahoma, TN Good News Exchange\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-07-10T04:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/tullahoma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/Story-1-photo1-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Becca Roberts\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Becca Roberts\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/tullahoma\\\/grant-mizell\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/tullahoma\\\/grant-mizell\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Becca Roberts\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/goodnewsmags.com\\\/tullahoma\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/28c28d46dae44b89311bd30b4660414d\"},\"headline\":\"Col. 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