Col. Joseph D. Janik is the commander of the 439th Airlift Wing, Westover Air Reserve Base, Massachusetts. The wing reports to the 4th Air Force at March ARB, California and supports the Air Mobility Command’s worldwide airlift mission. The 439 AW is home to eight C-5M Super Galaxy aircraft. As the senior officer, he is responsible for more than 3,000 personnel, including civilians, Air Reserve Technicians and traditional reservists.
Col. Janik is a native of New York and began his career as a Tactical Aircraft Maintenance Specialist, assigned to the RAF Upper Heyford, United Kingdom, in 1988. After completing his four year active duty tour, he joined the Air Force Reserve with the 328th Airlift Squadron, Niagara Falls ARS, New York as a C-130 Flight Engineer. After earning a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration from the State University of New York at Buffalo, he was commissioned at Officer Training School, Maxwell AFB, Alabama. He attended Undergraduate Pilot Training at Columbus AFB, Mississippi and Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas. After graduating from UPT in 1998, he returned to the 328th Airlift Squadron, flying the C-130 at Niagara Falls ARS, New York, eventually working as the Chief of Standardization and Evaluation. He has flown combat missions in support
of Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom. Prior to his
current assignment, Col. Janik served as the Wing Commander
for the 910th Airlift Wing, Youngstown, Ohio.
EDUCATION:
1992 Community College of the Air Force, by correspondence
1996 Bachelor of Science, Business Administration, State University of New York at Buffalo
2005 Squadron Officer School, by correspondence
2007 Air Command and Staff College, by correspondence
2013 Air War College, by seminar/correspondence
2013 Masters of Aeronautical Science, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, by correspondence
ASSIGNMENTS:
1. June 1989 - June 1991, Tactical Aircraft Maintenance Specialist, 20th Fighter Wing, RAF Upper Heyford, United Kingdom.
2. June 1991 - December 1992, Tactical Aircraft Maintenance Specialist, 27th Fighter Wing, Cannon, N.M.
3. September 1993 - June 1996, C-130 Flight Engineer, 328th Airlift Squadron, Niagara Falls ARS, N.Y.
4. June 1996 - October 1996, student, Officer Training School, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
5. October 1996 - December 1996, student pilot, Initial Flight Screening, Lackland AFB, Texas.
6. February 1997 - July 1997, student pilot, Columbus AFB, Miss.
7. July 1997 - March 1998, student pilot, Naval Air Station, Corpus Christi, Texas.
8. March 1998 - November 2008, C-130H Pilot, Chief Pilot, 328th Airlift Squadron, Niagara Falls ARS, N.Y.
9. November 2008 - September 2011, Chief, Stan/Eval, 914th Operations Group, Niagara Falls ARS, N.Y.
10. September 2011 - July 2014, Commander, 22nd Air Force/Detachment 1, Little Rock AFB, Ark.
11. July 2014 - September 2014, Commander, 327th Airlift Squadron, Little Rock AFB, Ark.
12. September 2014 - November 2016, Commander, 914th Operations Group, Niagara Falls ARS, N.Y.
13. November 2016 - November 2017, Director, Operations/Readiness, 22 AF/A3/A5, Dobbins ARB, Ga.
14. November 2017 - February 2019, Vice Commander, 910th Airlift Wing, Youngstown ARS, Ohio.
15. February 2019 – April 2021, Commander, 910th Airlift Wing, Youngstown ARS, Ohio (January 2020 – May 2020, Director of Mobility Forces, Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar).
16. April 2021 – Present, Commander, 439th Airlift Wing, Westover ARB, Mass.
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS:
1. August 2014, Mobility & Airlift Operations lead, Joint Air Component Coordination Element (JACCE) team, supporting the Republic of Korea’s (RoK) 2nd Operational Command (2OC), as a lieutenant colonel.
2. August 2018, Pacific Sentry, Deputy Director of Mobility Forces, as a colonel.
3. January 2020 – May 2020, USAFCENT, Director of Mobility Forces, as a colonel.
FLIGHT INFORMATION:
Rating: Command Pilot
Flight hours: More than 4000 military flight hours and over 3,000 civilian flight hours
Aircraft flown: T-37, T-44, C-130, C-5M
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS:
Legion of Merit
Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters
Air Medal with oak leaf cluster
Aerial Achievement Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
Air Force Achievement Medal
Meritorious Unit Award
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Valor Device and oak leaf cluster
Combat Readiness Medal with oak leaf cluster
Air Reserve Forces Meritorious Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
National Defense Service Medal with bronze star
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION:
Second Lieutenant October 4, 1996
First Lieutenant October 4, 1998
Captain September 13, 2001
Major September 13, 2005
Lieutenant Colonel August 23, 2011
Colonel March 5, 2016
(Current as of July 2022)