55th Wing welcomes new commander

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt, James M. Hodgman and Ryan Hansen
  • 55th Wing Public Affairs
OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb. --  The Fightin' Fifty-Fifth has a new leader following a change of command ceremony here today. 

Col. John N.T. Shanahan took command of the 55th Wing, Offutt's host unit, from Brig. Gen. James J. Jones, who had commanded the wing since March 2007. 

"Laura and I are absolutely thrilled to be here," Colonel Shanahan said. "We've been overwhelmed by the wonderful treatment that we've received since being notified of this new assignment and we owe special thanks to the local community for welcoming us with open arms." 

Colonel Shanahan comes to the Fightin' Fifty-Fifth, the largest wing in Air Combat Command, from Hurlburt Field, Fla., where he was commander of the 505th Command and Control Wing. There he was responsible for developing the combat capability of the Air and Space Operations Center and leading the Air Force's Distributed Mission Operations and Live-Virtual-Constructive capabilities. 

"I've always considered it to be a great honor and privilege to command at any level and never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd get the opportunity to lead a second wing within Air Combat Command and especially to lead a wing of this size and prominence," he said. 

As the 55th Wing commander, Col. Shanahan now oversees the wing's mission on four different continents, which include intelligence gathering, information warfare, global reconnaissance and support for 90 associate units. 

"Throughout my career I've had many opportunities to watch the Fightin' Fifty-Fifth in action," he said. "Throughout these years I've always been most impressed with what I have seen. Your skills are world renowned and your pride is palpable." 

General Jones leaves Offutt for MacDill AFB, Fla., where he is scheduled to become the deputy director for operations at U.S. Central Command. He received a Legion of Merit to mark his leadership at the wing over the past two years. 

"A short two years ago, I asked you folks for four things: mission readiness, expeditionary mindset, teamwork and sustainability," he said. "That very long citation [for the Legion of Merit] that they just read is not mine, it's yours. 

"You are tremendous, you do a mission, several missions that nobody else can accomplish," General Jones continued. "We can go back metrically and we can show our contributions to high value targets; our contributions to national objectives. But what we cannot and will not ever be able to show is how many lives you have saved."
Lt. Gen. Robert J. Elder Jr., 8th Air Force commander, presided over the ceremony.