Lt. Gen. Jim Slife took command Friday of Air Force Special Operations Command. He succeeds Lt. Gen. Brad Webb, who will now serve as commander of Air Education and Training Command.
“[Slife] is the perfect man at the perfect time for this critical position,” said Army Gen. Richard Clarke, commander of U.S. Special Operations Command. During his many years in special operations Slife “set an example for all of us to follow.”
“Your dedication to our nation and its great warriors has left a profound impact on all of us,” Clarke said. "You are going to continue to keep AFSOC on its global scale and foster the culture of ‘There is a way – we find it.’ ”
Slife has spent most of this 30-year Air Force career in special warfare. He has served as an MH-53J instructor pilot, director of operations for the 20th Special Operations Squadron, 27th Special Operations Group commander, and 1st Special Operations Wing commander.
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Dave Goldfein, who led the change of command ceremony, described Slife as “the obvious choice.”
“He brings with him the expertise to take this command to new heights,” Goldfein said. “As the United States Special Operations Command vice commander, he ensured our special operations forces had the resources they needed to get the mission done.”
Slife, the 12th officer to command AFSOC, will be in command of approximately 20,800 air commandos worldwide.
“These airmen here today — we’ll talk about them as legends,” Slife told the assembled. “We have airmen wearing Air Force Crosses and Silver Stars. These are outstanding airmen. I will serve them with the humble dedication they deserve.”
