JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. (AP) — The Air Force side of Joint Base Lewis-McChord is getting a new commander.
The Air Force tells The News Tribune that Col. R. Wyn Elder will take over leadership of the 62nd Airlift Wing from Col. Kevin J. Kilb on Tuesday.
Elder and his family are relocating from Altus Air Force Base in Oklahoma, where he was the No. 2 wing commander. He returns to familiar country, having led the 4th Airlift Squadron at McChord from 2006 to 2008.
This time around, Elder will be in charge of nearly 2,500 active-duty military and civilian personnel. Since the base has combined with Army operations, he will not have to oversee any ground support workers. Elder will focus on the base’s squadrons of C-17 cargo jet crews, which fly supplies and people into combat zones and get called for humanitarian relief.
