Air Force Col. Jeremiah Hammill was relieved as commander of the 96th Test Wing Civil Engineer Group at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida just three days before he was scheduled to hand off the unit to a new commanding officer, an Air Force Materiel Command spokesperson confirmed on Friday.
The 96th Test Wing commander relieved Hammill on Monday “due to a loss in confidence in his ability to lead and to maintain good order and discipline,” the spokesperson told Task & Purpose.
“Information came to the Commander’s attention that caused him to lose confidence in Col. Hammill’s ability to lead and raised concerns about good order and discipline within 96 CEG,” the spokesperson said. “At this time, we are not going to comment further on the circumstances leading to this decision.”
When asked if Hammill faces any charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the spokesperson replied: “It would be inappropriate to speculate. In accordance with Air Force regulations, relief of command may be used as a basis to support subsequent collateral adverse administrative action in some situations.”
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Hammill declined to comment for this story.
The 96th Test Wing is based at Eglin where it evaluates a wide array of weapons, communications systems and avionics used across the Air Force and in other services. The wing oversees 120,000 square miles of test and training ranges over the Florida Panhandle and waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Eglin’s ranges host operations as varied as futuristic weapons testing to the jungle training portion of the Army’s Ranger School. The civil engineer group that Hammill commanded, according to a 96th Test Wing Fact sheet, oversaw the base’s physical plant, infrastructure, facilities, systems, housing, 11.6 million square feet of physical plant and over 3,200 facilities.
All military branches use the euphemism “loss of confidence” when announcing that commanding officers and senior enlisted leaders have been fired. This allows them to avoid explaining exactly why leaders have been relieved of command.
Commanders can be fired for several reasons ranging from leadership problems, having an inappropriate relationship with a subordinate, and being arrested for drunken driving. But the absence of specific information about why a leader has been relieved often creates a vacuum that is filled by rumors and conspiracy theories that are often proven to be untrue.
Task & Purpose and other media outlets can submit Freedom of Information Requests to learn more about why leaders have been fired, but the process can take months or even longer.
Hammill’s relief of command was first reported on Tuesday by the Mid Bay News. He assumed command of the 96th Test Wing Civil Engineer Group in June 2022.
His rotation leading the 96th Test Wing Civil Engineer Group had been scheduled to end on Thursday, the Air Force Materiel Command spokesperson said.
“Col. Michelle Sterling was previously slated to succeed Col. Hammill and is now the 96th Civil Engineer Group commander,” the spokesperson said. “She was previously the commander of the 324th Training Squadron, Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas”.
Hamill holds a degree in engineering from Clarkson University in New York; a Master of Education from Trident University International, an online university based in Arizona; and he is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Air War College and Air Command and Staff College, according to his Linkedin profile.
He previously led the 611th Civil Engineer Squadron at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, and served as director of staff at the Air Force Research Laboratory, the spokesperson said.
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