Holloman to receive new commander

  • Published
  • By Arlan Ponder
  • 49th Wing Public Affairs
HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. --  The 49th Wing will take on its second commander on June 22, 2012, when Col. David Krumm relinquishes command to Col. Andrew Croft.

Croft comes to Holloman AFB from the 12th Flying Training Wing at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas, where he served as the Operations Group commander. During this assignment he was responsible for the execution of the introduction to fighter fundamentals student and instructor upgrade mission, as well as the Air Force's only pilot instructor training, remotely piloted aircraft pilot indoctrination and basic sensor operator qualification programs. He oversaw five flying training squadrons and an operations support squadron consisting of 349 flying instructors, 24 enlisted members, and more than 280 Department of Defense civilians and contractors who collectively produce 1,126 graduates per year.

This will not be Croft's first time to step foot on Holloman AFB. He was here temporarily from June 1990 to September 1990 as a lead-in fighter training student.

His recent assignments include commander, 433rd Weapons Squadron, USAF Weapons School, Nellis AFB, Nev.; executive officer, Allied Air Component Command Headquarters, Izmir, Turkey; and strategic planner, Directorate for Strategic Plans and Policy, Joint Staff, the Pentagon, Washington, D.C.

Croft is a command pilot with more than 3,000 hours of flight time in the F-15C, T-6A, T-38A and T-37B. An Air Medal recipient, Croft earned his commission in 1988 after graduating from the University of California, Los Angeles. Additional decorations include the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters, Aerial Achievement Medal with two oak leaf clusters, Joint Service Commendation medal and the Air Force Commendation Medal with one oak leaf cluster.

Krumm, having served Holloman AFB since June 2010, will be attending Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass. He leaves Team Holloman with the distinction of being the first commander of the 49th Wing - the renaming from the 49th Fighter Wing to the 49th Wing served to better represent the diverse missions currently being conducted at Holloman AFB, which has more than 20 associate units with missions ranging from flying to training to expeditionary resources.

"Team Holloman is richly blessed to have an officer of Andy Croft's caliber taking command. The entire Croft family will be a wonderful addition to Team Holloman and to the Tularosa Basin," Krumm said. "As I leave Holloman, I know its future holds great accomplishments and an example for the Air Force's continued success."

For additional information and photos, please visit the Holloman web site at www.holloman.af.mil , like us on the Holloman Facebook page at www.facebook.com/HollomanonFB , or follow us on Twitter @HollomanAFB.