Colonel Carl Magnusson is the Commander of the 914th Air Refueling Wing, Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station, New York. The wing, home to eight KC-135 aircraft, is composed of three groups and 12 squadrons and is strategically located on Western New York’s Canadian border between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. In this role, Colonel Magnusson is responsible for the overall success of the wing’s mission to organize, train, and equip Rapid Global Mobility forces for the Theater or Joint Force Commander. The 914 ARW is host to approximately 3,000 assigned military, civil service, and contract personnel.
The colonel is a 1990 graduate of the University of Oklahoma, earning his regular commission through Air Force ROTC. He joined the Reserve in 1999 and served as a KC-135 Instructor Navigator and Instructor Pilot. A Joint Qualified Officer, he has deployed in support of multiple global contingencies as well as the NASA Airborne Science Program. In his last assignment, Colonel Magnusson was the Chief, Plans Division, Directorate of Plans, Programs, and Requirements, Headquarters Air Force Reserve Command, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. He has over 5,000 flying hours in various USAF and NASA aircraft.
EDUCATION
1990 Bachelor of Business Administration, University of Oklahoma.
1994 KC-135 Central Flight Instructor Course--Navigator, Altus Air Force Base, Okla.
1998 Master of Business Administration, University of North Dakota.
2000 Squadron Officers School, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2003 Contingency Wartime Planning Course, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2003 Joint Air Operations Planning Course, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2003 Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2006 KC-135 Instructor Aircraft Commander Course, AFB, Okla.
2011 Joint Information Operations Orientation Course, Norfolk, Va.
2012 Air War College, Air Reserve Component Seminar, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2014 Advanced Joint Professional Military Education, Norfolk, Va.
2020 KC-135 Aircraft Commander Transition Course, Altus AFB, Okla.
ASSIGNMENTS
1. January 1992–October 1992, Specialized Undergraduate Navigator Training, Mather Air Force Base, California
2. October 1992–March 1993, Student, Combat Crew Training Course, Castle AFB, California
3. March 1993–August 1994, Navigator, 306th/11th Air Refueling Squadron, Altus AFB, Oklahoma
4. August 1994–August 1998, Instructor Navigator, 911th Air Refueling Squadron Grand Forks, AFB, North Dakota
5. June 1999–December 2000, Navigator, 314th Air Refueling Squadron, Beale AFB, California
6. January 2001–January 2002, Joint Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training, Vance AFB, Oklahoma
7. February 2002–February 2005, Wing Plans Officer, 940th Air Refueling Wing, Beale AFB, California
8. February 2005–November 2007, Asst Director of Operations, 940th Operations Supt Flt, Beale AFB, California
9. November 2007–June 2009, Deputy Chief of Pacific Influence Operations, Detachment 5, 10th Air Force
Headquarters, Beale AFB, California
10. July 2009–January 2011, Deputy Director of Air, Space, and Information Operations, 713th Combat
Operations Squadron, Beale AFB, California
11. January–August 2011, Director of Air, Space, and Information Operations, 713th Combat Operations
Squadron, Beale AFB, California
12. August 2011–April 2012, Director of Staff, 713th Combat Operations Squadron, Beale AFB, California
13. April 2012–November 2015, Joint Crisis and Contingency Planner and Joint Fires Element Chief of Plans,
Future Operations Division, HQ USPACOM, Camp Smith, Hawaii
14. November 2015–September 2017, Director, Joint Exercise Control Group, Training and Exercises Division,
HQ USPACOM, Camp Smith, Hawaii (August 2016–January 2017, Chief, Operations Integration Cell-Turkey, Ankara, Turkey)
15. September 2017–July 2020, Chief of Plans Division, Headquarters Air Force Reserve Command, Robins
AFB, GA (April – October 2019, Chief of Staff, 455th Air Expeditionary Wing, Bagram AF, Afghanistan)
16. June 2020–Present, Commander, 914th Air Refueling Wing
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. April 2012–November 2015, Joint Crisis and Contingency Planner and Joint Fires Element Chief of Plans,
Future Operations Division (J35), HQ USPACOM, Camp Smith, Hawaii as a lieutenant colonel
2. November 2015–September 2017, Director, Joint Exercise Control Group, Training and Exercises Division
(J37), HQ USPACOM, Camp Smith, Hawaii as a colonel
3. August 2016–January 2017, Chief, Operations Integration Cell-Turkey, Ankara, Turkey, as a colonel
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: Command Pilot, Senior Navigator
Flight hours: More than 5,000 including the following aircraft:
USAF: KC-135A/E/R/T, HH-60, EC-130H
NASA: DC-8-72, C-20A, YRQ-4A, B-200
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Defense Meritorious Service Medal with one oak leaf cluster
Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Aerial Achievement Medal with three oak leaf clusters
Joint Service Commendation Medal
Air Force Commendation Medal with two oak leaf clusters and C-device
Air Force Achievement Medal
Combat Readiness Medal with six oak leaf clusters
National Defense Service Medal with service star
Antarctica Service Medal
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal with four service stars
Southwest Asia Service Medal with service star
Afghanistan Campaign Medal with service star
Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal with service star
Humanitarian Service Medal
Nuclear Deterrence Operations Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Six NASA Group Achievement Awards, including:
Tropical Composition, Cloud and Climate Coupling Experiment (TC4), 2007
Operation ICEBridge (OIB), 2009-2017
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant December 1990
First Lieutenant June 1993
Captain June 1995
Major October 2002
Lieutenant Colonel October 2009
Colonel August 2015
(Current as of June 2020)