LATHAM, N.Y. - The nation’s largest Air National Guard promoted two brigadier generals to major general and changed its commander on Monday in a ceremony at New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs headquarters.
“Our ceremony today is absolutely unique for us,“ said Maj. Gen. Patrick Murphy, the adjutant general of New York, as he prepared to preside over the triple ceremony.
Brig. Gen. Anthony German, formerly the chief of staff of the New York Air National Guard and assistant adjutant general for air , became Maj. Gen. German, and formally took command of the 5,900-member force from Maj. Gen. Verle Johnston, who retires at the end of June. He is the 18th commander of the New York Air National Guard.
With five flying wings and the Eastern Air Defense Sector, along with units specializing in satellite reconnaissance, aerial operations planning and support for ground units, the New York Air National Guard is larger than other state Air National Guards.
Brig. Gen. Kevin Bradley, the National Guard assistant to the commander of United States Cyber Command, and New York’s assistant adjutant general for Air, was also promoted to major general.
Both men have been outstanding officers who will continue to provide important service to their state and nation, Murphy said.
Bradley, a veteran of the Iraq War and the Persian Gulf War, is an F-16 pilot, who commanded the New York Air National Guard’s 174th Fighter Wing from 2008 to 2012. During that period the 174th Fighter Wing transitioned from flying manned fighters to operating the unmanned MQ-9 remotely piloted aircraft.
A resident of Manlius, New York, Bradley was commissioned as an Air Force officer in 1984 and has served in the New York Air National Guard since 1992.
In his remarks, Bradley emphasized the key role all members of the New York Air National Guard play in producing successful state and federal missions.
“This is a team effort, it is a team sport,” Bradley said.
German, a master navigator, who has guided planes to the South Pole, was commissioned as an Air Force officer in 1983 and joined the New York Air National Guard’s 109 the Airlift Wing.
The 109th flies the largest ski-equipped aircraft in the world, the LC-130 Hercules variant, and plays a key role in supporting science research in Antarctica and Greenland, as well as being able to support military missions in polar regions.
Prior to becoming chief of staff of the New York Air National Guard, German commanded the 109th Airlift Wing from 2006 to 2010.
“The New York Air National Guard is in great hands with Tony German, “Johnston, the outgoing commander and a Schenectady, N.Y., resident, told the audience of 300. “He is a man of great dedication, great values, and more importantly, great courage,” Johnston said.
German has made an effort to get to know all the New York Air National Guard units, understand their missions, and understand the challenges they face, Johnston said.
German’s four adult children – Zack, Becky, Air National Guard Staff Sgt. Benjamin German, and Air National Guard Captain Joshua German - pinned on their father’s new rank.
In his remarks, German praised the Airmen and leaders of the New York Air National Guard, as well as his family and his friends and neighbors in Oneonta, New York.
“There are so many people in this room who make the job look easy,” German said referring to the Air Guard leaders, as well as Army National Guard leaders, who attended the command change. “We are a pretty large organization with a lot of great people,” he said.
German holds a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island and has taken advanced military and national security courses offered at Syracuse University; the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies in Garmisch, Germany; the National Defense University, Washington; and Army War College at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania.
He holds the Legion of Merit, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Air Force Aerial Achievement Medal, several awards of the Combat Readiness Medal, the Antarctica Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the National Defense Service Medal among other awards.
The New York Air National Guard is comprised of:
•The 106th Rescue Wing, based at Westhampton Beach on Long Island, which flies the HH-60 Pavehawk rescue helicopter and the HH-130 search and rescue aircraft;
•The 105th Airlift Wing, based outside Newburgh in the Hudson Valley which operates the C-17 and also mans the largest Security Forces Squadron in the Air National Guard;
•The 109th Airlift Wing, based outside Schenectady, which flies the LC-130 “Skibird” to the South Pole and in Greenland;
•The 174th Attack Wing, in Syracuse, which conducts MQ-9 operations and trains MQ-9 maintenance personnel and MQ-9 pilots and sensor operators;
•The 107th Airlift wing based at Niagara Falls, which is transitioning from a C-130 mission to the MQ-9 mission;
And the Eastern Air Defense Sector in Rome, which is responsible for air defense east of the Mississippi and Washington D.C., as part of the North American Air Defense Command.