WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE — In a closed ceremony held June 12, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base welcomed Col. Patrick Miller as the new commander of the 88th Air Base Wing.
Miller succeeds Col. Thomas P. Sherman, who has served as base commander since June 2018.
Miller assumes command with 22 years of experience in the US Air Force, and comes to Wright-Patterson from Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Tex. where he served as vice commander.
“Over the course of the next two years, I promise you I will focus all of our efforts, center mass, at the mission, our people, and their readiness, while cultivating a climate conducive to innovation, excellence, dignity, and respect,” Miller said.
Sherman has been selected to become the principal military assistant to the deputy secretary of defense at the Pentagon. Sherman guided Wright-Patterson Air Force Base through several historic events, including the Memorial Day tornadoes, an active shooter incident on base, and most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic. He was presented with the Legion of Merit.
“You’ve had an awesome ride,” Miller told Sherman. “We truly appreciate your service to the base. We’re inheriting a remarkable team, and that’s due to your leadership.”
Lt. Gen. Robert McMurry, commander of the Air Force Lifecycle Management Center, presided over the change of command.
“To the members of the 88th, especially those that are online, you are in good hands,” McMurry said.
Only select military personnel and the families of the two commanders were permitted to attend the proceedings, as a precaution against COVID-19. The base broadcast the ceremony in a Facebook livestream that, at its peak, was viewed live by more than 300 people.
“As commander of the 88th Air Base Wing and Installation, Miller will oversee one of the largest air base wings in the Air Force,” the base said in an official statement. “The wing provides support and services to one of the largest, most diverse, and most organizationally complex bases in the Air Force including a major acquisition center, research and development laboratories, a major command headquarters, an airlift wing, and the world’s largest military air museum.”
Wright-Patterson employs more than 30,000 civilian and military personnel, and remains Ohio’s largest single site employer.
