SANDSTON, Va. –
Col. Marshall L. Kjelvik will succeed Brig. Gen. Dean A. Tremps as the next Virginia National Guard Air Component Commander according to an announcement made Nov. 21, 2017, by Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of Virginia. Tremps has been selected for promotion to major general, and his next assignment will be Air National Guard Assistant to the Commander of Air Education and Training Command.
“Col. Kjelvik brings a wealth of experience to his new duties, earned during a varied array of assignments,” Williams wrote in the announcement. “I am confident he will successfully continue the extraordinary initiatives begun by Brig. Gen. Tremps as the Virginia Air National Guard faces its next set of challenges.” Kjelvik currently serves as the Virginia Air National Guard Director of Staff, and the effective date for his new assignment is Nov. 21.
As the Air Component Commander, Kjelvik will be responsible for leading the Virginia Air National Guard, assisting and empowering Virginia Airmen in executing their respective plans, programs and missions. He analyzes and evaluates training programs and operational readiness levels to determine mission capability and unit effectiveness. He is the primary advisor to the Adjutant General of Virginia on Air National Guard affairs at both the state and federal level.
“Brig. Gen. Tremps has served well and leaves a legacy of integrity, duty and excellence.” Williams wrote. “Over the past two years, he has led the Virginia Air National Guard through a critical period ensuring that our Airmen had everything they needed to meet our diverse missions. We will be eternally grateful for his extraordinary dedication to the Virginia Air National Guard and our Airmen.”
Kjelvik enlisted in 1982 and earned his commission as a distinguished graduate of the Air National Guard Academy of Military Science in 1984. He transferred from the North Dakota Air National Guard to the Virginia Air National Guard in 2007, and he has served in numerous command and staff positions. An instructor/evaluator and command pilot with over 2,800 flying hours in the F-16 and F-4, served as commander of the 192nd Mission Support Group Commander at Langley Air Force Base prior to his current position as the Virginia Air National Guard Director of Staff.
Tremps was commissioned in 1988 after graduating from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He has flown the T-38, F-15C and F-16C aircraft. He has deployed and has combat time in the F-15C, F-16C and most recently the MQ-1B aircraft in support of Operation Provide Comfort, Operation Southern Watch, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation New Dawn. He has also flown several Operation Noble Eagle and POTUS defense missions. Tremps has been in the National Guard since 1998, serving in both traditional and active-duty statuses.