- AFRL has welcomed Brig. Gen. Douglas Wickert as its new commander
- Wickert succeeded Brig. Gen. Jason Bartolomei throughout a change of command ceremony
- The 2026 Air and Space Summit will discover AI, industrial area relay and extra
Brig. Gen. Douglas Wickert assumed command of the Air Force Research Laboratory throughout a ceremony held Wednesday on the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio.
The management transition at AFRL marks the following chapter for the service’s science and expertise group because it continues to advance analysis and innovation priorities. As the protection group focuses on rising applied sciences and future mission necessities, authorities and business leaders will collect on the 2026 Air and Space Summit on July 30 to debate synthetic intelligence and machine studying, interoperable optical networks, industrial area relay and different key subjects. Save your seat now!
Lt. Gen. Linda Hurry, commander of Air Force Materiel Command, or AFMC, presided over the occasion, the place Wickert formally assumed management of AFRL from Brig. Gen. Jason Bartolomei.
Bartolomei, who assumed leadership of AFRL in 2024, retired after 29 years of army service. Under his management, AFRL expanded collaboration with business, academia and authorities companions whereas advancing science and expertise initiatives.
Who Is Brig. Gen. Douglas Wickert?
Wickert is a command pilot with greater than 2,000 flight hours in over 40 plane. He is a U.S. Air Force Academy and U.S. Naval Test Pilot School graduate with superior engineering levels from MIT and a doctorate from the Air Force Institute of Technology.
He most lately served as director of air, area and our on-line world operations at AFMC, the place he managed assets, coverage and infrastructure supporting cyber, operational and check capabilities throughout the command. Before this place, he was commander of the 412th Test Wing at Edwards Air Force Base in California.
Wickert brings to AFRL his acquisition, check and analysis, operational flying, and management expertise.
During remarks on the ceremony, Wickert emphasised the position of science and expertise in supporting future warfighting capabilities and preserving nationwide safety.
“The best way to predict the future is to invent it. The best way to win the future is to invent it. If we are to preserve the peace of the world in this pivotal decade, our science and technology enterprise must answer that same call again,” Wickert mentioned. “It is our turn to discover, it is our turn to develop, it is our turn to deliver, and together our turn to win the future.”
What Is AFRL?
AFRL serves because the Department of the Air Force’s key scientific analysis and growth middle that leads the invention, growth and supply of applied sciences for air, area and multidomain operations. The laboratory’s workforce helps seven mission areas throughout greater than 40 areas worldwide.
Under Bartolomei’s management, AFRL announced an organizational restructuring to align its analysis enterprise with mission priorities and speed up the supply of warfighting capabilities.