MINOT, N.D AIR FORCE BASE (KFGO) – Six leaders, including two commanders and four of their subordinates, have been fired from Minot Air Force base without explanation
Col. Gregory Mayer, who ran the 5th Mission Support Group; Maj. Jonathan Welch, the 5th Logistics Readiness Squadron commander; and four unidentified subordinates were fired due to a “loss of confidence” in their ability to lead, Air Force Global Strike Command said in a release.
“These personnel actions were necessary to maintain the very high standards we demand of those units entrusted with supporting our nation’s nuclear mission,” said Maj. Gen. Andrew Gebara, the two-star in charge of Air Force nuclear units under 8th Air Force.
Mayer held the support group’s top job for eight months after arriving at Minot last June. He has held leadership roles in civil engineering for the past several years of his nearly 25-year career.
At Minot, Mayer oversaw 1,900 airmen across six squadrons.
Mayer’s group supports daily operations of the base’s 28 B-52H Stratofortress nuclear-capable bombers, 165 Minuteman III nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles and launch control centers, and eight UH-1N helicopters.
The Air Force declined to provide more information about whether the other airmen were officers or enlisted, who will replace them, or whether they were all fired over the same incident.
Minot has seen frequent high-level dismissals, including the 91st Missile Wing Operations Support Squadron commander in 2021, the 69th Bomb Squadron and 91st Security Forces Group commanders in 2018, the 741st Missile Squadron commander in 2014, the 91st Missile Wing commander in 2009 and the 5th Bomb Group commander in 2007.
“Our mission is foundational to our nation’s defense, and we remain committed to the success of that no-fail mission,” Gebara said.
