On Friday, June 12th, due to COVID-19 precautions, the 505th Communications Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Florida, released a prerecorded change of command ceremony. The outgoing commander, Maj. Gilberto Perez, relinquished command to Lt. Col. Veronica Williams. The ceremony was presided over by Col. Shayne Yorton, commander of the 505th Combat Training Group, Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.

As the commander, Williams will direct mission execution with 57 personnel, as well as over $23 million worth of command, control, communication, computers, and intelligence, or C4I, network and system equipment. The 505th CS directly supports the annual training of more than 60,000 joint and coalition warfighters with a primary focus on the operational level of command and control, or C2.

The 505th CS operates and maintains C2 systems and multiple networks, and provides various modeling and simulation capabilities in support of joint and coalition training, exercises, training, and experimentation at Hurlburt Field, Florida, and various sites across the globe. The squadron designs, builds, sustains, and maintains a network backbone supporting 289,000 warfighters annually, including integration with Joint Training and Experimentation Network, or JTEN, Battle Lab Collaborative Simulation Environment, or BLCSE, and Navy Continuous Training enterprise, or NCTE. The 505th CS is the active cyber defense for the air operations centers, or AOCs, suites utilizing the Cyber Vulnerability Assessment/Hunter weapon system.

Williams’ previous assignment was the branch chief, Future Operations Division, Operations Directorate, U.S. Cyber Command, Fort George G. Meade, Maryland. In this position, she led eleven personnel in the development and publication of concepts of operations and operations orders for the conduct of cyberspace operations against adversary threats. Williams and her team routinely coordinated with the Joint Staff, the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Policy - Cyber, and interagency organizations on the planning and conduct of cyberspace operations.

“I have aspired to be a squadron commander my entire career, so to have the opportunity to lead the 505th Communications Squadron is truly an honor,” stated Lt. Col. Veronica Williams, commander of the 505th CS.  “Then men and women of the 505th Comm Squadron have a truly unique mission, and I look forward to helping the team continue to excel at that mission as it evolves.” 

Maj. Perez will be attending the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.