CAMP LEMONNIER, Djibouti -- CAMP LEMONNIER, Djibouti-- The 449th Air Expeditionary Group welcomed a new commander, U.S. Air Force Col. Jason Chambers, during a change of command ceremony at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti, May 31.
Chambers assumed command from Col. Matthew Bartlett in the ceremony presided over by Col. Calvin Powell, vice commander of the 435th Air Expeditionary Wing.
In his parting words, Bartlett shared a message to his team and the Airmen of the 449th AEG.
“I am humbled to have had this opportunity to be at your side as you and your predecessors applied your skills and talents to the myriad of missions and challenges here in East Africa,” said Bartlett. “Our nation needs us here, far from our homes and families, in order to reassure our allies, our partners, and our adversaries of our commitment to this region and our commitment to countering violent extremists and malign actors seeking to upset and threaten life and stability in Africa and beyond.”
After receiving the group guidon and taking command, Chambers praised Bartlett and his team for a job well done and shared a charge with the Airmen of the 449th AEG.
“You have an outstanding reputation, and it is attributable not only to Col. Bartlett and his command team, but to their ability to delegate responsibility and leadership at every echelon of his organization all the way down to our junior enlisted members,” said Chambers. “As you stand beside your fellow Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines, across all our coalition partners and joint forces, I would ask you to stand beside them and recognize that every single one of you are an integral part of a team that is comprised of the very best that our nations’ respectively have to offer.”
The 449th AEG provides personnel recovery task forces, intra-theater airlift, base operating support integrator, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities, and aircraft launch and recovery elements in support of U.S. Africa Command and U.S. Central Command and our regional partners in East Africa.