An official website of the United States government
Here's how you know
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

U.S. Forces Japan and 5th Air Force receive two new senior enlisted leaders

  • Published
  • By Capt. AnnMarie Annicelli
  • 5th Air Force
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan --  

Chief Master Sgt. Terrence Greene, who, like his predecessors, served dual-hatted as the U.S. Forces Japan Senior Enlisted Leader and 5th Air Force Command Chief, relinquished his responsibilities during a Change of Responsibility ceremony, Nov. 28, 2018, here, to Chief Master Sgt. Richard Winegardner Jr., who will serve as the USFJ SEL, and Chief Master Sgt. Brian Kruzelnick, who will serve as the 5th AF Command Chief.

“Our headquarters is going through a transformation today. This is the first time the dual-hatted position of USFJ SEL and 5th AF Command Chief will become two separate, dedicated positions, one focused on the joint force and one solely focused on the readiness of our Airmen,” explained USFJ and 5th AF Commander Lt. Gen. Jerry Martinez, who presided over the ceremony. “We have witnessed the security environment change drastically in the past two years. The threats around Japan have grown extremely fast, so now is the time to ensure we have laser-focused attention not only on the readiness of our joint forces, but also interoperability with and among the Japanese enlisted joint forces.”

As the USFJ SEL, Winegardner will be the principal advisor to the commander on all matters concerning joint enlisted personnel across Japan and will focus his time coordinating joint and bilateral actions and exercises with U.S. service components, the Japan Self-Defense Forces and other Japanese organizations to strengthen interoperability and enhance the U.S.-Japan alliance.

“Chief Master Sgt. Winegardner is a joint leader and a joint warrior,” said Martinez. “He served with V Corps, XVIII Airborne Corps and Army Special Operations Command. He is going to focus on USFJ and the joint force.”

As the 5th AF Command Chief, Kruzelnick will support 11,000 Airmen and three wings with concentrated attention on fight tonight readiness and bilateral operations with the Japan Air Self-Defense Force and other partner nations.

“Chief Master Sgt. Kruzelnick is an Airman’s Airman, words I do not use lightly. He knows the U.S. Air Force and he knows Airmen. Chief Master Sgt. Kruzelnick has been all over our U.S. Air Force and has a wide breadth of experience from training and mobility to Intelligence, Reconnaissance and Surveillance and space operations,” Martinez added.

Before Greene relinquished his responsibilities, Martinez reminded the audience of his accomplishments as USFJ SEL and 5th AF Command Chief and the future that awaits Greene at Air Mobility Command.

“Over his two-and-a-half-years in Japan, Chief Master Sgt. Greene coached and mentored the chief master sergeant of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force and worked tirelessly to enhance professional development and strengthen relationships between the U.S. and Japanese enlisted corps,” Martinez shared. “Moving forward, Chief Master Sgt. Greene will become the command chief for Air Mobility Command—a global command with a global footprint on every continent. He will be responsible for Airmen across North and South America and Europe to the Middle East, as well as the Indo-Pacific and even Antarctica.”

Prior to officially relinquishing responsibility, Chief Master Sgt. Greene advocated for the need to develop a more ready, lethal and joint-minded noncommissioned officer corps, as well as furthering the development of the Japanese enlisted joint force.

“Upon my arrival, I saw U.S. Forces in Japan as a 9-1-1 force for the region, being strategically located and uniquely capable. Over the past few years, our forces responded to multiple crisis, from natural disasters, threats to the stability in the region to assuring freedom of navigation and operations across air and sea lanes in the Indo-Pacific. The mission of U.S. Forces in Japan continued to grow, and that vision of being a 9-1-1 response force is even more fitting now than when I became the command senior enlisted leader, and readiness is the foundation for that responsiveness,” Greene informed the audience as his tenure in Japan came to a close.