RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany -- The 435th Air Ground Operations Wing welcomed its new commander, Col. Matthew Bartlett, during a change of command ceremony at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, June 9, 2023.
The change of command was the culminating event in a four-part ceremony that included the inactivation of the 435th Air Expeditionary Wing, activation of the 406th Air Expeditionary Wing and 406th AEW assumption of command.
“Prior to today, the burden and responsibility of commanding these two wings fell on one set of shoulders,” said U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Derek France, 3rd Air Force commander. “These Airmen and mission sets – in very different theaters and continents – deserve a full-time commander to lead both of these wings.”
These ceremonies officially divided the air ground operations wing and air expeditionary wing into separate organizations under their own commands, after Col. Bryan Callahan, 435th AGOW out-going commander, previously commanded both wings.
Callahan relinquished command of the 435th AGOW to Bartlett, the former 435th AGOW vice commander.
Bartlett addressed his new wing during the ceremony to give thanks for their service and share his excitement for future operations.
“While through most of this past year I have been very deliberately focused on Africa, you [435th AGOW Airmen]now have my undivided attention," said Bartlett. "I have a lot of work to do to ensure you have what you need to lead the way in this theater and in our Air Force and transform how we support our joint and coalition warriors as we defend this continent once more in history from enemies that threaten freedom and security."
The 435th AGOW is comprised of three groups, nine permanent squadrons, three deployed squadrons, and more than 1,400 personnel across 21 locations in Europe. Their mission is to rapidly deploy forces to the forward edge, conduct command and control, execute the kill-chain, and set the theater to project combat airpower inside the anti-access/area denial threat environment in support of combined forces air commander and joint objectives.