MAJOR GENERAL SHERRIE L. MCCANDLESS
Maj Gen Sherrie L. McCandless is the Commanding General, District of Columbia National Guard. As Commanding General, she is responsible for the strategic leadership, training, readiness, operational employment and performance of the Army, Air Force and Joint components of the D.C. National Guard. General McCandless oversees the D.C. Air National Guard, which includes the 113th Wing's F-16 Fighting Falcons that secure the skies over the Nation’s Capital and the C-40 Clipper that transports members of Congress and other dignitaries globally. She also oversees the D.C. Army National Guard, which includes the 74th Troop Command, 260th Regiment (Regional Training Institute), the 1-224th Aviation Security and Support Battalion, and the 1-226th General Support Aviation Battalion, which consists of the UH-60 Black Hawk, UH-72 Lakota and the C-12 Huron.
General McCandless received her commission from the Reserve Officer Training Corps at the University of Miami where she studied Mathematics. She has served in numerous operational and training flying assignments and commanded units at the squadron, wing and joint levels. Her assignments include extensive joint duty and strategic planning positions to include Director, Plans and Policy, J5, Combined Joint Inter-Agency Task Force - Syria; Deputy Director, Strategic Plans and Policy, J5, National Guard Bureau and Deputy Director, Political and Military Affairs J5, Western Hemisphere, Joint Staff, Pentagon. Multiple overseas deployments include Qatar, Turkey, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Jordan including combat flight time over Iraq. She is a command pilot with more than 2,100 hours in the F-16, A-10, C-40 and T-38. Prior to her current assignment Maj Gen McCandless was the Director, Legislative Liaison, National Guard Bureau.
EDUCATION
1991 Bachelor of Science in Mathematics, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida
1997 Squadron Officer School (SOS), Maxwell Air Force Base (AFB), Ala.
2007 Air Command and Staff College (ACSC), Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence
2010 Master of Science, National Security Strategy, National War College, Fort McNair, Washington D.C.
2016 Senior Executive Orientation Course (SEOC), Daniel K. Inouye Indo-Pacific Center for Security Studies, Honolulu, Hawaii
2016 Senior Executive Seminar (SES), George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany
2016 Senior Leader Orientation Course (SLOC), Joint Base (JB) Andrews, Md.
2017 CAPSTONE, National Defense University (NDU), Fort McNair, Washington D.C.
2017 Enterprise Leadership Seminar (ELS), University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, N.C.
2017 International Relations and National Interest Fellowship, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Mass.
2017 Joint Force Air Component Commander Course (JFACC), Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2018 Senior Executives in National and International Security (SENIS), Harvard Kennedy School, Cambridge, Mass.
2022 General and Flag Officer Homeland Security Executive Seminar (GFOS), Harvard Kennedy School, Cambridge, Mass.
2023 General Officer Readiness Executive Health Program, San Antonio, Texas
ASSIGNMENTS
1. August 1993 - March 1996, Instructor Pilot, T-38, 50th Flying Training Squadron, Columbus Air Force Base (AFB), Miss.
2. March 1996 - December 1997, C Flight Commander, 3rd Brigade Air Liaison Officer, 25th Air Support Operations Squadron, Wheeler Army Airfield (AAF), Hawaii
3. December 1997 - January 1999, Student Pilot, Basic Course, F-16, 61st Fighter Squadron, Luke AFB, Ariz.
4. January 1999 - August 1999, F-16C/D Fighter Pilot and Plans Officer, 80th Fighter Squadron, Kunsan Air Base (AB), Korea
5. August 1999 - January 2000, Chief of Plans, F-16C/D Fighter Pilot, 80th Fighter Squadron, Kunsan AB, Korea
6. January 2000 - January 2001, Chief of Squadron Training, F-16CJ Pilot, 78th Fighter Squadron, Shaw Air Force Base, S.C.
7. January 2001 - January 2002, F-16CJ Flight Lead, Assistant Chief Wing Weapons and Tactics, 20th Operational Support Squadron, Shaw AFB, S.C.
8. January 2002 - January 2003, Flight Commander, F-16CJ Flight Lead, 78th Fighter Squadron, Shaw AFB, S.C.
9. January 2003 - January 2004, Chief of Squadron Training, F-16CJ Instructor Pilot, 62nd Fighter Squadron, Luke AFB, Ariz.
10. January 2004 - January 2005, Wing Executive Officer, F-16 Instructor Pilot, 56th Fighter Wing, Luke AFB, Ariz.
11. January 2005 - January 2007, Base Realignment and Closure Implementation Program Officer, Air National Guard Readiness Center (ANGRC), Joint Base (JB) Andrews, Md.
12. January 2007 - October 2007, Assistant Executive Officer, Director of the Air National Guard, Pentagon
13. October 2007 - September 2008, Executive Officer, Director of the Air National Guard, Pentagon
14. October 2008 - August 2009, Aide-de-Camp to the Chief of the National Guard Bureau, Pentagon
15. August 2009 - June 2010, Student, National War College, National Defense University, Fort McNair, Washington D.C.
16. June 2010 - June 2011, Air National Guard Legislative Liaison, National Guard Bureau (NGB), Arlington, Va.
17. June 2011 - August 2011, Joint Legislative Liaison, NGB, Arlington, Va.
18. August 2011 - September 2013, Commander, 201st Airlift Squadron, District of Columbia Air National Guard (DCANG), JB Andrews, Md.
19. September 2013 - February 2014, Director, Plans and Requirements (A5), ANGRC, JB Andrews, Md.
20. February 2014 - June 2015, Commander, 124th Fighter Wing, Idaho Air National Guard (IDANG), Gowen Field, Idaho
21. June 2015 - February 2016, Director, Operations (A3), Idaho Joint Force Headquarters, Boise, Idaho, (July 2015 - January 2016, Director, Plans and Policy (J5), Combined Joint Inter Agency Task Force - Syria, Southwest Asia)
22. February 2016 - April 2017, Vice Director, Strategic Plans and Policy (J5), NGB, Washington, D.C.
23. May 2017 - May 2019, Deputy Director, Political-Military Affairs, Western Hemisphere, J-5, Department of Defense Joint Staff, Washington D.C.
24. May 2019 - April 2021, Director, Office of Legislative Liaison, NGB, Washington D.C.
25. April 2021 - September 2023, Commanding General, District of Columbia National Guard, Washington D.C.
26. September 2023 - Present, Special Assistant to the Director of the Air National Guard, Pentagon
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. October 2008 - August 2009, Aide-de-Camp to the Chief of the National Guard Bureau, Pentagon as a lieutenant colonel
2. June 2010 - June 2011, Air National Guard Legislative Liaison, National Guard Bureau (NGB), Arlington, Va. as a lieutenant colonel
3. June 2011 - August 2011, Joint Legislative Liaison, NGB, Arlington, Va. as a lieutenant colonel
4. February 2016 - April 2017, Vice Director, Strategic Plans and Policy (J5), NGB, Washington, D.C. as a brigadier general
5. May 2017 - May 2019, Deputy Director, Political-Military Affairs, Western Hemisphere, J-5, Department of Defense Joint Staff, Washington D.C. as a brigadier general
6. May 2019 - April 2021, Director, Office of Legislative Liaison, NGB, Washington D.C. as a major general
7. April 2021 - September 2023, Commanding General, District of Columbia National Guard, Washington D.C. as a major general
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: command pilot
Flight hours: more than 2,100, including 46 combat hours
Aircraft flown: A-10C, AT-38B, C-38A, C-40C, F-16C/D and T-38A
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Defense Superior Service Medal with bronze oak leaf cluster
Legion of Merit with bronze oak leaf cluster
Defense Meritorious Service Medal with bronze oak leaf cluster
Meritorious Service Medal with three bronze oak leaf clusters
Aerial Achievement Medal
Joint Service Commendation Medal
Air Force Commendation Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters
Army Achievement Medal
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS & AFFLIATIONS
Life Member NGAUS
Air Force Association
Iwo Jima Association of America
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant Oct. 4, 1991
First Lieutenant Oct. 4, 1993
Captain Oct. 4, 1995
Major July 1, 2002
Lieutenant Colonel Feb. 7, 2008
Colonel Dec. 28, 2011
Brigadier General Feb. 8, 2016
Major General May 22, 2019
(Current as of November 2023)
