Next 28th Bomb Wing commander named

  • Published
  • By 28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. --  Col. Kevin Kennedy, currently the director of the Air Force chief of staff's Strategic Studies Group at the Pentagon, will replace Col. Mark Weatherington as commander of the 28th Bomb Wing during a change of command ceremony scheduled for April 5.

Weatherington, who has led the wing since May 13, 2011, will move to the Pentagon to serve as the Military Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of Defense, Dr. Ashton Carter.

The DSD is the principal civilian deputy to the Secretary of Defense and is appointed by the president. He typically serves as the chief operating officer of the Department of Defense, overseeing day-to-day business and management practices across the DoD.

"First of all, it has been a tremendous honor to lead this wing of remarkable Airmen over the last two years," Weatherington said. "From a personal and professional standpoint, I will miss it deeply.

"Stephanie and the girls and I will also miss many close friendships we've made not only with our Airmen, but also with neighbors and friends in the Black Hills," he added. "At the same time, we look forward to continuing to make a difference for the Air Force and our Nation as we return to northern Virginia."

Under Weatherington's leadership, Ellsworth aviators flew more than 1,800 B-1 combat sorties over Afghanistan, and more than 2,500 Airmen successfully deployed to a variety of locations overseas. Also, during his tenure, the wing stood up a remotely piloted aircraft squadron - the 432nd Attack Squadron - in November 2011, flying daily MQ-9 Reaper sorties around the world.

Other milestones reached during his time as the commander include Ellsworth Airmen earning more than 58 Air Combat Command and Air Force level Awards, and garnering the coveted Fairchild Trophy, presented to the U.S. Air Force's "Best Bomb Wing" during the Air Force Global Strike Command Challenge in 2011.

"Clearly the MQ-9 RPA mission and B-1 hot pit refueling stand out in my mind, as they cut across almost all organizations and functions on the base," Weatherington noted of the base's recent accomplishments. "However, I think I take the most pride in seeing talented Airmen from across the wing step up to do incredible things every day - things they were trained for and expected, and things they may not have expected to ever do in their AF career, like responding to a tragic C-130 crash in the Black Hills, leading a vehicle convoy in Iraq, training our Afghan partners, or even offering critical leadership in a different career field or unit than the one they grew up in."

In his current role, Kennedy provides strategic assessments, options, and recommendations to the Air Force Chief of Staff concerning military strategy and national security strategy with specific emphasis on Air Force contributions.

Kennedy is no stranger to Ellsworth, having previously served here as the commander of the 34th Bomb Squadron and the deputy commander of the 28th Operations Group. Prior to his current assignment, Kennedy was the vice commander of the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in Southwest Asia. While there he led a composite wing that conducted critical air presence, precision strike, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations in support of Operations New Dawn and Enduring Freedom, and Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa.

Kennedy is a command pilot with more than 3,200 flight hours in the B-1 bomber and T-38 Talon.