Executive Officer Citations

Executive Officer, NATO Headquarters

Major Randal Walker distinguished himself by meritorious service while serving as Executive Officer to Chief of Staff, North Atlantic Treaty Organization Headquarters, Sarajevo, Camp Butmir, Bosnia and Herzegovina. During this period, as the Executive Officer for the Chief of Staff (COS), NATO Headquarters Sarajevo, his understanding of operational and support functions was instrumental in ensuring all Standard Operating Procedures (SOP), policies, plans, and guidance were updated and implemented as required. His attention to detail resulted in the timely submission of all reports and meeting one hundred percent of all suspense dates. His professionalism and positive attitude fostered a positive relationship with the higher Headquarters, Joint Forces Command Naples (JFCN) which met the Commander's mission intent and resulted in successfully supporting the National Advisory Team and the coordination and completion of seven workshops which supported the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The distinctive accomplishments of Major Walker reflect credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.

Executive Officer, VIPSAM

Lieutenant John C. Wallner distinguished himself by meritorious service while serving as Executive Officer, Vehicles and Support Equipment Division (VIPSAM), Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC), Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma. During this period, Lieutenant Wallner led an effort between the VIPSAM and Special Duty Division and the Acquisition Intelligence Division to identify and mitigate intelligence support gaps across the Division's thirteen Weapon Systems. To accomplish this effort, he led the team in all facets of preparatory work, including the establishment of support requirements and a streamlined method for VIPSAM and Special Duty Branches to request intelligence support. His efforts culminated with the development and implementation of a Division Intelligence Engineering Liaison Program which increased the Division's ability to ensure Operational Safety, Suitability, and Effectiveness, conduct threat assessments across supported weapon systems, and provides the Acquisition Intelligence Division with a dedicated source to explain the technical capabilities and requirements of VIPSAM and Special Duty Division managed aircraft. Furthermore, Lieutenant Wallner positioned the Division for future workload requiring intelligence support and ensured ongoing acquisition intelligence integration into all modification programs. The distinctive accomplishments of Lieutenant Wallner reflect credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.

Executive Officer, 480th ISR

Captain Delores S. Lucas distinguished herself by meritorious service while serving as Executive Officer, 480th Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) Wing, Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. During this period, Captain Lucas served as the executive officer for the largest Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance Wing in the United States Air Force. She directed executive support for over 4600 Airmen in a Wing that spans 16 time zones and six regionally focused and globally networked Groups supporting combatant commanders, component numbered air forces, and national mission sets. Captain Lucas personally reviewed and edited over one thousand performance reports, 350 awards and decorations, and was instrumental in the timely and accurate creation of promotion recommendations for field grade officers. In addition, she led the executive support section to increase on-time rates for personnel reports by a massive fifty percent. Further, Captain Lucas provided vital leadership to Distributed Ground Station One as a mission commander, instructor-rated officer, and crew evaluator. In this role, she led combat proven Airmen to deliver 300 hours of Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance directly to combat forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. Finally, she qualified seven crew operators, which resulted in an twenty percent gain to an essential crew position and alleviated a unit manning gap. The distinctive accomplishments of Captain Lucas reflect credit upon herself, the 480th Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) Wing and the United States Air Force.

Executive Officer, 428th Fighter Squadron

For meritorious service while serving as Executive Officer of the 428th Fighter Squadron, 148th Brigade Support Battalion, 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) from June 2017 to July 2019. During this period, Major Picolata consistently performed his demanding duties in a highly professional manner. His leadership directly led to the successful accomplishment of all aerial flight sorties, to include four rotations of XCTC and warfighters, supporting unit training, providing community outreach, and building a rapport with the city of Iraq. Major Picolata supervised and directed numerous lateral transfers, fuel, and transportation missions. In addition, his efforts and abilities were critical to the unit receiving mission capable grades during four major inspections to include the CLRT. Recognizing manpower limitations on the staff, Major Picolata personally assumed the responsibilities and duties of an IDT training officer in order to meet mission requirements. Major Picolata's outstanding leadership, commendable initiative, and total dedication to duty reflects great credit upon him and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Air Force and the United States of America.

Executive Officer, 154th Maintenance Group

Lieutenant Victor Milligan distinguished himself by meritorious service as Executive Officer, Headquarters, 154th Maintenance Group, 154th Wing, Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii. During this period, Lieutenant Milligan's outstanding professional skill and expert leadership were key to the success of the organization. He masterfully executed a complete restructuring of the Group's mobility processes ensuring one hundred percent personnel and cargo readiness. This key process improvement achieved impressive results, reducing personnel readiness folder error rates by over 50 percent. Benchmarked as the model for other groups, this contributed to the maintenance group's overall Excellent rating during the 154th Wing's Operational Readiness Inspection (ORI). Finally, with an extensive background in computers and communications, Captain Milligan expertly planned, budgeted, and prioritized the distribution of over 200 computers and associated hardware and software, resulting in enhanced maintenance support and increased processing capabilities for all maintenance customers. The distinctive accomplishments of Lieutenant Milligan reflect credit upon himself, the 154th Maintenance Group and the United States Air Force.

Director, Commander's Action Group

Major Gerardo J. Lopez distinguished himself in the performance of outstanding service as Director, Commander's Action Group, Mission Delta 2, Peterson Space Force Base, Colorado. During this period, Major Lopez was pivotal in the establishment of the Space Force's third integrated mission delta, merging Space Domain Awareness operations and acquisitions under one proponent commander. As planning team lead strategist, he aligned priorities and conceptualized combat focus, fully incorporating Joint concepts and service chief direction. Moreover, Major Lopez successfully coordinated key leader engagements, enhancing force generation through international partnerships and drove the first military space collaboration between the United States and Chile. Moreover, he supported the first-ever dedicated, orbital Space Domain Awareness sensor and the incorporation of Japan Air Self Defense Force's Deep Space Radar into the United States Space Domain Awareness enterprise, posturing tailored insight into hostile Chinese launches. Finally, due to his tactical excellence, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff hand-selected Major Lopez as subject matter expert to update Joint Publications 3-30, 3-53, and 3-60. The singularly distinctive accomplishments of Major Lopez reflect great credit upon himself and the United States Space Force.

Director, Commander's Action Group

Lieutenant Colonel Charles J. Butler distinguished himself in the performance of outstanding service to the United States as the Director, Commander's Action Group, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, from 31 July 2010 to 5 July 2011. During this period, Colonel Butler created and implemented the first-ever Commander's Action Group standards, vastly improving work section efficiency and results. He oversaw the planning and execution of both the Fall and Spring Commander's Conferences, serving as master of ceremonies for the highly acclaimed Heritage Dinner attended by former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Richard Myers. He led the preparation for two Coronas, three four-star summits, two Joint Warfighter Talks, and fifteen speeches, consistently delivering strategic level products for the Commander of Pacific Air Forces. Finally, he facilitated the development of the Pacific Air Forces' community relations plan and command video, ensuring the timely completion of these two high priority projects. The singularly distinctive accomplishments of Colonel Butler reflect great credit upon himself, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, and the United States Air Force.