Col. Paul R. Pawluk is the Vice Commander for the 89th Airlift Wing at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. The wing is responsible for worldwide special air mission airlift, logistics, aerial port and communications support for the President, Vice President, cabinet members, combatant commanders and other senior military and elected leaders as tasked by the White House, Air Force Chief of Staff and Air Mobility Command. The wing provides 24/7 alert airlift and operates an Executive Airlift Training Center and Government Network Operations Center.
Colonel Pawluk entered the Air Force after commissioning from the University Wisconsin-Madison in 2001. After graduating, Colonel Pawluk was assigned to Peterson AFB in Colorado Springs, CO flying the C-21. In 2006, he was assigned to Dover AFB, DE flying the C-5B as Chief of C-5 Operations Group Standardization and Evaluation. Following his assignment at Dover AFB, Colonel Pawluk was selected as a European and Eurasian Foreign Area Officer (FAO) and attended Defense Language Institute and Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, CA, where he gained proficiency in both Ukrainian and Russian. Colonel Pawluk then served on the U.S. European Command’s (EUCOM) J5 directorate as the Lead Contingency Planner for the Russian Problem Set. Following his assignment at EUCOM, he was assigned to Travis AFB, CA where he served as Operations Officer, 60th Operations Support Squadron before assuming command of the 22d Airlift Squadron. Colonel Pawluk has deployed in support of Operations ENDURING FREEDOM, IRAQI FREEDOM, and as part of the Army’s Joint Psychological Operations Task Force.
Prior to his current assignment, Colonel Pawluk was a National Defense Fellow in the International Security Studies Program at the Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, Tufts University. Following his fellowship, he served as the Lead, Joint Planning Group Ukraine and Deputy Division Chief, Central Europe and Eurasia Division, Deputy Directorate for Politico-Military Affairs—Europe, NATO, Russia (ENR), in the J-5 Plans, Strategy, and Policy directorate of the Joint Staff.
EDUCATION
1999 Harvard Ukrainian Summer Institute, 20th Century Ukraine History, Cambridge, Massachusetts
2001 Bachelor of Arts in International Relations, Political Science, & Russian, Univ of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin
2001 Air and Space Basic Course, Maxwell AFB, Alabama
2006 Master of Arts in Diplomacy with a Concentration in International Conflict, Norwich University, Vermont
2007 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Alabama (Top Third Graduate)
2010 Air Command and Staff College, by correspondence
2010 George C. Marshall Center, Leaders Program - Advanced Security Studies, Garmisch, Germany
2012 Defense Language Institute, Russian Basic Course, Monterey, California (Honors Graduate)
2013 Naval Postgraduate School, Security Studies in Europe & Eurasia, Monterey, California. (Distinguished Graduate and Outstanding Air Force Graduate)
2014 Joint Professional Military Education II, Norfolk, Virginia.
2020 National Defense Fellow in the International Security Studies Program at the Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts.
ASSIGNMENTS
1. June 2001–December 2001, Second Lieutenant, Offutt AFB, Neb.
2. January 2002–January 2003, Student, Joint Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training, Vance AFB, Okla.
3. February 2003–February 2006, C-21 Instructor Pilot and Chief Executive Officer, Peterson AFB, Colo.
4. June 2006–February 2011, C-5B Evaluator Aircraft Commander, Chief of C-5 Group Stan/Eval, Dover, Del.
5. March 2011–March 2012, Student, Russian Basic Course, Defense Language Institute, Monterey, Calif.
6. September 2012–September 2013, Student, Security Studies, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, Calif.
7. November 2013–September 2016, Lead Contingency Planner, Europe and NATO Branch, USEUCOM J5 Plans
8. October 2016–May 2018, Operations Officer, 60th Operations Support Squadron, Travis AFB, Calif.
9. May 2018–May 2020, Commander, 22d Airlift Squadron, Travis AFB, Calif.
10. June 2020–June 2021, National Defense Fellow, Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, Tufts University, Medford, Mass
11. July 2021–May 2023, Lead, Joint Planning Group Ukraine and Deputy Division Chief, Central Europe/Eurasia Division, Deputy Directorate for Europe, NATO, Russia, J5 Strategy, Plans, and Policy, Joint Staff, Pentagon, Wash, DC.
12. June 2023–Present, Vice Commander, 89th Airlift Wing, Joint Base Andrews, Maryland.
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: command pilot
Flight Hours: more than 2,700
Aircraft flown: T-37, T-1A, C-21, C-5B/M, C-40
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Defense Superior Service Medal Defense Meritorious Service Medal
Meritorious Service Medal with one oak leaf cluster Air Medal
Aerial Achievement Medal
Joint Service Commendation Medal with two oak leaf clusters Air and Space Commendation Medal Air and Space Achievement Medal
Joint Meritorious Unit Award with two oak leaf clusters
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant May 20, 2001
First Lieutenant June 18, 2003
Captain June 18, 2005
Major Aug 1, 2011
Lieutenant Colonel Aug 1, 2016
Colonel Apr 1, 2022
(Current as of June 2023)