AL UDEID AIR BASE, Qatar -- During a change of command ceremony at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing, Brig. Gen. Jason R. Armagost accepted command of the 379th AEW from outgoing commander, Brig. Gen. Darren V. James, June 12.
As the commander of the 379th AEW, Armagost will lead the largest, most diverse expeditionary wing in the Air Force, with approximately 9,000 U.S. and Coalition service members deployed to or assigned to the base.
Before accepting his new assignment, Armagost was deputy director of current operations with U.S. Strategic Command. He was responsible for providing the commander of U.S. STRATCOM with global situational awareness and operational advice across their area of responsibility.
“It is very staggering to hear those stats read off,” said Armagost when referring to James’ Legion of Merit citation. “It is almost beyond comprehension. The fuel alone that is passed through this wing in support of the fight and to keep the fight alive is incredible.”
The change of command ceremony is a military tradition which dates back to July 3, 1775. During the ceremony the outgoing commander passes the unit’s guidon to the incoming commander.
James' leadership and vision helped the 379th AEW garner some outstanding statistics; producing 192,800 flight hours during 29,000 combat sorties, transporting nearly 25,000 U.S. and coalition warfighters, delivering 915 million pounds of fuel, collecting 9,200 hours of valuable intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, and delivering 10,500 precision-guided munitions.
James’ next assignment will be as vice commander at 18th Air Force at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. The 18th Air Force is responsible for worldwide operational missions that provide rapid, global mobility and sustainment for America’s armed forces through airlift, aerial refueling, aeromedical evacuation and contingency response.
James thanked the men and women of the 379th AEW for their commitment and dedication to the mission.
James concluded addressing the wing with this thought, “Thank you for choosing to embrace our mission and contributing to the outstanding heritage of this unit and more importantly, to your own personal legacy.”