Colonel Olson takes command of 22nd Air Refueling Wing

The former vice commander of the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing, Southeast Asia, took command of the 22nd Air Refueling Wing at McConnell Air Force Base on Tuesday morning.

Colonel Albert G. Miller relinquished command to Colonel Joshua M. Olson in front of several hundred airmen and guests during a time-honored military tradition in Hangar 1107.

“I will always cherish my time here as your commander,” Miller said. “Colonel Olson is the right man to take this command to even greater heights.”

The tradition provided the opportunity for witnesses to observe Miller passing the guidon, a flag symbolizing the air refueling wing, to Olson as a gesture of relinquishing control to the incoming commander.

Olson will lead the base in organizing, training and equipping airmen. He will also help prepare for KC-135 Stratotanker mobility and the arrival of the Boeing KC-46 Pegasus.

Miller’s new assignment is director of U.S. Central Command Deployment and Distribution Operations Center, U.S. Central Command, Southwest Asia.

Kaitlyn Alanis: 316-268-6290, @KaitlynAlanis

This story was originally published July 18, 2017 at 1:06 PM with the headline "Colonel Olson takes command of 22nd Air Refueling Wing."