MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. --
Col. Eric Shafa assumed command of the 42nd Air Base Wing at Maxwell Air Force Base, July 7, 2016.
Shafa is the former commander of the 47th Mission Support Group, 47th Flying Training Wing, at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas. He is following Col. Andrea Tullos, the wing’s commander since June, 2014, who is going to the Pentagon to take command of the Air Force’s security forces.
As he took assumption of command, Shafa thanked Tullos for her commitment and previous leadership of the wing.
Shafa received his commission in 1993 through Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps from San Jose State University. He entered active duty in May 1994. He has held operational assignments at the flight and squadron level, served as an Afghanistan/Pakistan Hand, and commanded a Provincial Reconstruction Team in Afghanistan. He has also served in headquarters staff positions at Air Force Special Operations Command, U.S. Central Command and Headquarters U.S. Air Force.
As the 42nd ABW Commander, Shafa will lead the wing’s mission to provide the foundation for success for Air University, the 908th Airlift Wing, the Business and Enterprise Systems Directorate and more than 30 tenant units. With a population of more than 12,500 active duty, reserve, civilian and contractor personnel, the Maxwell-Gunter community has a significant economic and cultural impact on the River Region.
“My wife, Beth, and I are very excited to be joining the River Region and to continue to build and strengthen the partnership in the best hometown not only in the Air Force, but in America as a general city. The relationship between the base and the community is symbiotic and remains instrumental to each other’s success,” said Shafa.
This is a return to Maxwell for the new commander. He is a graduate of Air University’s Squadron Officer School and Air Command and Staff College.
“To my Airmen, I am humbled and privileged by the extraordinary opportunity to lead and serve the fine men and women of the 42nd Air Base Wing, he said. “The Air Force is the smallest we’ve been since 1947 and although our numbers are rising slowly, what each unit does matters now more than ever …never forget that you are the fuel that ensures the success of all of our mission partners and the intellectual and leadership center of the Air Force.”