Brig. Gen. Chris Hammond is a Special Assistant to the Air Force Chief of Staff, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia. In this role, he leads the Implementation Task Force, which is responsible for the development and standup of the Unit of Action defining the Air Force’s future Force Presentation model.

Brig. Gen. Hammond received his commission in 1998 from the United States Air Force Academy and earned his wings from Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training at Sheppard Air Force Base. Brig. Gen. Hammond has served as a Mission Commander, Forward Air Controller-Airborne, Instructor and Evaluator in operational F-16 squadrons and the USAF Weapons School. Brig. Gen. Hammond would go on to be the Director of Operations, 16th Weapons Squadron, USAF Weapons School and the Commander and Leader of the United States Air Force Air Demonstration Squadron “Thunderbirds” at Nellis AFB, Nevada. Upon completion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Defense College, Rome, Italy, he would return to Washington D.C. as a Senior Military Evaluator for Air Warfare Systems for the Office of Secretary of Defense - Director, Operational Test and Evaluation (OT&E).

Prior to his current position, he served as Director of Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) and Airborne Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities (A2/3/6U) for the Deputy Chief of Staff ISR and Cyber Effects Operations and for the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and as Commander of the 8th Fighter Wing “Wolf Pack”, Kunsan Air Base, South Korea. Brig. Gen. Hammond has accumulated almost 400 combat hours in the F-16 over Iraq and Afghanistan in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

EDUCATION
1998 Bachelor of Science, Aeronautical Engineering, US Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colo.
2003 Tactical Leadership Programme, Florennes Air Base, Belgium
2004 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.
2006 Weapons Instructor Course, USAF Weapons School, Nellis AFB, Nev.
2009 Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence
2009 Master of Arts, Military Arts and Science, Air University, Ala., by correspondence
2011 Master of Science, Cyber Warfare, Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio
2014 Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence
2017 NATO Defense College, Rome, Italy
2021 Joint Forces Staff Colleges’ Joint and Combined Warfighting School, Norfolk Naval Station, Va.
2022 Enterprise Perspective Seminar, Capitol Hill, Alan L. Freed Associates, Inc., Washington, D.C.
2022 Cybersecurity Policy, Harvard Kennedy School, Boston, Mass.
2022 Global/Regional Seminar: China and the Indo-Pacific, Capitol Hill, Alan L. Freed Associates, Inc., Washington, D.C.

ASSIGNMENTS
1. July 1998–March 1999, Executive Officer, 16th Airlift Squadron, Charleston Air Force Base, S.C.
2. March 1999–May 2000, Student, Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training, 80th Operational Support Squadron, Sheppard AFB, Texas
3. September 2000–May 2001, Student, F-16 Formal Training Unit, 308th Fighter Squadron, Luke AFB, Ariz.
4. June 2001–July 2004, F-16 Instructor Pilot, 555th Fighter Squadron, Aviano Air Base, Italy
5. September 2004–December 2005, F-16 Instructor Pilot and Flight Evaluator, 36th Fighter Squadron; Chief of Fighter Standardization/Evaluation, 51st Operations Group, Osan AB, South Korea
6. January 2006–June 2006, Student, F-16 Weapons Instructor Course, USAF Weapons School, Nellis AFB, Nev.
7. June 2006–April 2008, Chief Instructor Pilot, Weapons Officer, Assistant Director of Operations, 34th Fighter Squadron, Hill AFB, Utah
8. April 2008 –June 2010, Instructor Pilot, Chief of Wing Scheduling, Assistant Director of Operations, 16th Weapons Squadron, Nellis AFB, Nev.
9. June 2010–May 2011, Student, AF Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio
10. May 2011–July 2013, Fighter Programmer, Combat Forces Division, Strategic Plans and Programs, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
11. July 2013–October 2014, Director of Operations, Instructor Pilot, Evaluator, 16th Weapons Squadron, Nellis AFB, Nev.
12. January 2015–January 2017, Commander/Leader, USAF Air Demonstration Squadron “Thunderbirds,” Nellis AFB, Nev.
13. January 2017–July 2017, Student, North Atlantic Treaty Organization Defense College, Rome, Italy
14. July 2017–July 2019, Senior Military Evaluator, Director-Operational Test and Evaluation, Office of Secretary of Defense, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
15. July 2019–May 2020, Vice Commander, 35th Fighter Wing, Misawa AB, Japan
15. June 2020–June 2021, Commander, 8th Fighter Wing, Kunsan AB, South Korea
16. June 2021–July 2023, Director, Joint and National Security Council Matters, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
17. July 2023–July 2025, Director, RPA and Airborne ISR Capabilities, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
18. July 2025–present, Special Assistant to the Air Force Chief of Staff, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.

SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. 2017–2019, Senior Military Evaluator, Director-Operational Test and Evaluation, Office of Secretary of Defense, the Pentagon, Arlington Va., as a colonel

FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating:  command pilot
Flight Hours:  More than 3,000 hours, including nearly 400 combat hours
Aircraft Flown:  T-37, T-38, F-16

MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Defense Superior Service Medal
Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster
Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters
Air Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Air Force and Space Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
Kosovo Campaign Medal
Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
Korean Defense Service Medal
NATO Medal

(Current as of August 2025)