15th Wing COC 2020

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Erin Baxter
  • 15th Wing Public Affairs

The 15th Wing hosted a change of command ceremony today at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.


The new 15th Wing commander is Col. Daniel Dobbels who succeeds Col. W. Halsey Burks. Burks, who served as commander since June 2018 will retire from the Air Force after serving 25 years. Dobbels entered the Air Force in 1998 as a distinguished graduate of the Air Force Academy. He also earned two master’s degrees in Organizational Management and National Security Strategy.

He completed Undergraduate Pilot Training at Vance Air Force Base, Oklahoma, where he was the distinguished graduate and the Air Education and Training Command Commander’s Cup Trophy Winner. He is a command pilot with over 3,200 hours in the C-17, C-12, T-1, and T-37 aircraft and has amassed more than 600 hours of combat time in support of Operations Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, Inherent Resolves, and Freedom’s Sentinel. He previously commanded the 517th Airlift Squadron at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, and served on Headquarters Air Force, major command, and two combatant command staffs.
The 15th Wing provides trained and ready Airmen to the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command commander and the Pacific Air Forces commander to execute strategic airlift, air dominance, and executive airlift missions via C-17A, C-37A, C-40 Band, F-22A aircraft.

As the commander, Dobbels serves as the senior airfield authority on Hickam Field and is responsible for the airfield’s safe and effective operation. Hickam Field serves as a strategic launching pad for the projection of American airpower throughout the Indo-Pacific region. The Wing’s total force integration relationship with the Hawaii Air National Guard is critical to the day-to-day operations and maintenance successes of the C-17 and F-22 mission sets. The 15th Wing also serves as the Air Force lead in partnership with the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam commander to provide mission support to all other Air Force entities on base.