178th Wing weclomes new commander Col. John Knabel

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio --
The 178th Wing hosted a change of command ceremony to honor incoming commander, Col. John Knabel, at Springfield Air National Guard Base in Springfield, Ohio, June 4.

The outgoing 178th Wing Commander, Col. Bryan Davis, thanked the 178th Airmen for their efforts to accomplish a consistently successful mission.

"Thank you for everything that you've done for me over the last five years," said Davis.

Davis also honored Knabel's achievement of becoming the new 178th commander.

"He was the right choice as vice commander and he's the right person to take my place," said Davis.

The Assistant Adjutant General for Air, Ohio, Brig. Gen. Gregory Schnulo, attended the ceremony and offered his congratulations to Knabel.

"The amount of knowledge he brings to this wing is amazing," said Schnulo.
Schnulo acknowledged the upcoming changes that the Air Force will undergo in the coming years.

Knabel's prior experience as a Marine; as a fighter pilot; and as the Director of Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance for the Air National Guard equips him with the skills to be a successful leader for the 178th Wing.

"He was in charge of intelligence for the entire Air Guard," said Schnulo. "There are very few people that you're going to meet that are like Col. Knabel."

Knabel commended the 178th Wing Airmen for their efforts to adapt to a new mission and to learn new skill sets.

"Today we're developing tactics, techniques and procedures that are being adopted by the Air Force right now from this base," said Knabel.

Knabel also recognized the 178th for their outstanding awards in the past several years, and he outlined his goals for the future.

"We're going to continue to do what we have done that has made us great in the past," said Knabel.