Lt. Gen. Hawk Carlisle has relinquished command of 13th Air Force at JB Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, to Lt. Gen. Ted Kresge. Kresge, a command pilot with more than 4,000 hours in the cockpits of trainers and F-15s, comes to the numbered air force from Nellis AFB, Nev., where he led the Air Force Warfare Center. “You’ve built an impressive reputation. Before I arrived, various Air Force senior mentors told me that 13th Air Force truly knows its business. That was echoed by senior officers across your [major command] staff, and from my brief interaction with you,” said Kresge to Hickam’s airmen during the Dec. 10 change-of-command ceremony. He added, “It’s clear I’m joining an A-team.” Carlisle returns to the Pentagon where he will serve as the Air Staff’s deputy chief of staff for operations, plans, and requirements. (Hickam report by TSgt. Kerry Jackson)
Members of Congress from both parties expressed frustration and dismay over the abrupt and still-unexplained firing last month of Air Force Gen. Timothy Haugh from his dual role as head of U.S. Cyber Command and director of the National Security Agency.