Col. Richard F. McElhaney is the Commander, 374th Airlift Wing and the Installation Commander, Yokota Air Base, Japan. As the installation host, the 374th Airlift Wing supports the headquarters for U.S. Forces Japan, Fifth Air Force, the Japan Air Self Defense Force Air Defense Command, HQ, United Nations Command-Rear, 58 tenant organizations and over 11,000 U.S. and Japanese base personnel. Col. McElhaney is responsible for 18 squadrons in the Department of Defense’s only tactical airlift wing in the Pacific theater with Airmen stationed in Japan, Singapore, and Australia. He is the Senior Airfield Authority for Yokota’s runway and the largest U.S. controlled airspace outside of the U.S. with 75,000 operations per year. As the Western Pacific airlift hub, Yokota AB provides mission-ready forces and base operating support to guarantee U.S. forward presence and crisis response with a $224 million operating budget supporting $12 billion of infrastructure.
Col. McElhaney entered the Air Force in May 2000 after receiving his commission as a Distinguished Graduate through ROTC from Mississippi State University. He completed undergraduate pilot training in 2002 and served as a specialized undergraduate pilot training instructor, flight commander, assistant director of operations, director of staff, Commander’s Action Group deputy director, standards and evaluations division chief, and C-130 E/H Hercules and T-1 Jayhawk evaluator pilot. He also held positions in Major Commands and Joint roles, including Headquarters Pacific Air Forces current operations division chief and deputy executive assistant for the U.S. Indo-Pacific Combatant Commander. Col. McElhaney brings in extensive experience in the U.S. Indo-Pacific area of responsibility from his assignments at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and Camp Smith, Hawaii, and his previous tour at Yokota AB as the 374th Operations Support Squadron commander. Prior to this assignment, he was the commander, 36th Contingency Response Group, Andersen Air Force Base, Guam.
Col. McElhaney is a command pilot with more than 3,800 hours in the C-130E/H/J, T-1, T-44 Pegasus and Cessna T-37 Tweet with 190 combat missions in support of Operations ENDURING FREEDOM, IRAQI FREEDOM, and NEW DAWN.
EDUCATION
2000 Bachelor of Arts and Science, Economics, Mississippi State University, Miss. (Distinguished Graduate)
2000 Aerospace Basic Course, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.
2006 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Ala. (Top Third)
2008 Master of Aeronautical Science, Embry-Riddle University, Prescott, Ariz.
2014 Master of Military Operational Arts and Science, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
(Academic Distinction)
2022 Master of Strategic Studies, Joint Warfighting Studies, Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
(Academic Distinction)
ASSIGNMENTS
1. June 2000 – June 2001, Assistant Chief of Wing Scheduling, 33rd Operations Support Squadron, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla.
2. June 2001 – March 2002, Student, Undergraduate Pilot Training, Columbus AFB, Miss.
3. March 2002 – October 2002, Student, Joint Flying Training, Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas
4. October 2002 – September 2006, Central Scheduler and Executive Officer, C-130E/H Aircraft Commander, 50th Airlift Squadron, Little Rock AFB, Ark. (September 2003 – February 2004, Tactics Officer and Copilot, 745th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar) (July 2004 – October 2004, Copilot, 777th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, Manas AB, Kyrgyzstan) (January 2005 – March 2005, Copilot, 738th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, Ali Al Salem AB, Kuwait)
(December 2005 – April 2006, Aircraft Commander, 386th Expeditionary Operations Group Detachment 1, Balad AB, Iraq)
5. September 2006 – February 2007, Student, T-1 Pilot Instructor Training, 99th Flight Training Squadron, Randolph AFB, Texas
6. February 2007 – April 2010, Flight Commander, Assistant Director of Operations, Commander’s Action Group Deputy Director, and T-1 Evaluator Pilot, 14th Operations Group, Columbus AFB, Miss.
7. April 2010 – June 2013, Director of Staff and Chief, Operations Group Standards and Evaluations, C-130E/H Evaluator Pilot, 19th Operations Group, Little Rock AFB, Ark. (October 2010 – January 2011, Aircraft Commander and Assistant Director of Operations, 777th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, Balad AB, Iraq) (September 2011 – November 2011, Instructor Pilot and Assistant Director of Operations, 737th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, Ali Al Salem AB, Kuwait)
8. June 2013 – June 2014, Student, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
9. June 2014 – June 2017, Deputy Chief and Chief, Current Operations Division, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii
10. June 2017 – June 2019, Commander, 374th Operations Support Squadron, Yokota Air Base, Japan
11. June 2019 – June 2021, Deputy Executive Assistant to the Commander, United States Indo-Pacific Command, Camp Smith, Hawaii
12. June 2021 – June 2022, Student, Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
13. June 2022 – June 2024, Commander, 36th Contingency Response Group, Andersen AFB, Guam
14. July 2024 – Present, Commander, 374th Airlift Wing, Yokota AB, Japan
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. June 2019 – June 2021, Deputy Executive Assistant to the Commander, United States Indo-Pacific Command, Camp Smith, Hawaii, as a lieutenant colonel
2. June 2022 – June 2024, Deputy Commander, Joint Task Force Presidential Support, United States Indo-Pacific Command, Camp Smith, Hawaii, as a colonel
3. December 2023 – June 2024, Deputy Dual Status Commander, Defense Support of Civil Authorities West, United States Indo-Pacific Command, Camp Smith, Hawaii, as a colonel
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: Command Pilot
Flight hours: 3,800
Aircraft flown: C-130E/H/J, T-1, T-44 and T-37
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Legion of Merit
Defense Meritorious Service Medal
Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf cluster
Air Medal with seven oak leaf clusters
Aerial Achievement Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Joint Service Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
Air Force Commendation Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Joint Service Achievement Medal with oak leaf cluster
Air Force Achievement Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Army Achievement Medal
Air Force Combat Action Medal
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant May 31, 2000
First Lieutenant May 31, 2002
Captain May 31, 2004
Major March 1, 2010
Lieutenant Colonel Aug. 1, 2015
Colonel June 1, 2021
(Current as of July 2024)