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Battle Creek Air National Guard Base Gets New Commander
June 01, 2022
LANSING, Mich. — Col. Daniel Kramer will assume command of the 110th Wing, Battle Creek Air National Guard Base, Mich., in a ceremony on base, June 4, 2022 at 2 p.m.
Kramer will succeed Col. Shawn Holtz, who will advance to a new assignment at the Michigan National Guard Joint Forces Headquarters in Lansing. Holtz has led Battle Creek’s 110th Wing since June 2019.
“Serving the outstanding members of the 110th Wing will be the highlight of my career and I am grateful for the opportunity to build on all Col. Holtz has accomplished here over the past three years,” said Kramer. “The 110th has an amazing, 75-year history of service to our community, state and nation. My job is to make sure our members have everything they need to keep up that tradition in an environment that is inclusive and committed to excellence.”
Kramer returns to Battle Creek after serving as commander of the 127th Mission Support Group, Selfridge Air National Guard Base, Michigan since August 2019. He graduated from the Michigan Technology University’s Reserve Officer Training Corps program in 1995 and served on active duty until 1998 when he transferred to the Michigan Air National Guard as a C-130 “Hercules” navigator at Selfridge ANG Base. From 2008 to 2019, Kramer held various roles at Battle Creek including commander of the 110th Force Support Squadron and commander of the 217th Air Operations Group.
Once slated for closure, Battle Creek ANG Base now supports a diverse portfolio of mission sets including a robust Cyber Defense squadron, MQ-9 Reaper flying operations, Agile Combat Support capabilities, and a Command & Control planning cell supporting U.S. Air Forces Europe – Air Forces Africa. According to Kramer, the base’s future looks promising.
“Most exciting to me is the huge potential for future growth that the 110th Wing brings to the table,” said Kramer. “With ample runway and ramp space and cutting-edge growth missions, Battle Creek has all of the infrastructure to support nearly any new initiative within the Department of the Air Force.”
During Holtz’s tenure as Wing Commander, the 110th Wing saw nearly 100 of its members activated to support the State of Michigan’s response to the Coronavirus pandemic, serving at food banks, testing sites, vaccination clinics and other venues across the state. In late 2021, dozens of unit members were activated to support Operation Allies Welcome, the largest non-combatant evacuation operation in U.S. history following the fall of Afghanistan.
“Battle Creek ANG Base is home station for nearly 1,000 members and it has been my honor to serve alongside them during some challenging times for our state and nation,” said Holtz. “They leave their families and civilian employers to report for duty on drill weekends, annual training, and deployments, ‘answering the call’ with incredible professionalism.”
Kramer points out that 2022 marks three-quarters of a century since the Air National Guard became part of the Battle Creek community. The base was federally activated in September 1947.
“The Michigan Air National Guard is first and foremost a community based organization,” he said. “The mission of the 110th Wing has changed many times over the last eight decades, but our culture of excellence, combined with strong community support, has always been our greatest enabler.”
Media interested in attending the change of command ceremony must RSVP to Capt. Andrew Layton at (517) 940-0881 or andrew.layton.1@us.af.mil by June 3.
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