State College, Pa. -- During an assumption of command ceremony at the 193rd Air Operations Group here May 16, Col. Brian Lehew took command of the unit, replacing Col. Scott Harron, who now serves as 193rd Special Operations Mission Support Group commander.
Lehew began his military career on active duty as an enlisted Aerospace Control and Warning Systems Operator in 1986, assigned to 9th Air Force, Shaw Air Force Base, S.C. His National Guard career began at the 112th Air Control Squadron (now the 193rd AOG) in 1990.
Lehew is a Joint Qualified Officer and has supported stateside and overseas deployments throughout his career. He established and commanded the 24th Expeditionary Air Defense Squadron to provide joint, ground-based air defense of the National Capital Region, served as Division Chief within the National Guard Bureau Operations Directorate, within the 1st Air Force Operations Directorate as Numbered Air Force Joint Interface Control Officer, within the NGB Joint Staff as Chief of Joint Collective Training, as Strategist within the NGB’s Chief’s Action Group, and as advisor to the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Manpower and Reserve Affairs. Prior to assuming his current position, Lehew served as commander of the 171st Mission Support Group, Pittsburgh.
As commander of the 193rd AOG, Lehew is responsible for leading more than 100 officers and enlisted members as they perform various command and control functions as part of the unit’s Air Operations Center mission.
“After 16 years away, I am thrilled to call the State College Air Guard Station home again," Lehew said during his assumption of command speech. "Thank you for the opportunity to return to the place where my marriage started and my kids started growing up … to the place where my Guard career started and where I also grew up as an Airman, a (non-commissioned officer), an officer and a husband.”
He added, “Our challenge together is to uphold the excellent standards and traditions of the past, while racing with purpose and deliberate logic into a contested future … one where the present normal becomes obsolete every 18 months, and our adversaries are also sprinting. I view my responsibilities to you – as your commander – as a sacred trust. Sure, I’ll have a crazy idea or two along the way. But I will never, ever give you cause to question my devotion to you.”