Lt. Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach took command of 11th Air Force during a ceremony on Tuesday at JB Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. Wilsbach will also command US Northern Command’s Alaska Command and the Alaskan NORAD Region, taking the reins from retiring Lt. Gen. Russell Handy. Wilsbach, who received his third star in the promotion, previously served as the director of operations for US Central Command.
The U.S. supports “a stronger and more capable” European defense, Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III said during an Oct. 22 press conference in Brussels—but that defense should not duplicate the functions and capabilities of the NATO alliance.