Col. Asheleigh O.J. Gellner is the deputy commander of the 182nd Airlift Wing, Peoria, Illinois. She is responsible for numerous wing programs, as well as advising and assisting the wing commander with maintaining the combat readiness of Peoria’s C-130 Hercules aircraft fleet and traditional and full-time Illinois Air National Guardsmen.
Col. Gellner commissioned into the U.S. Air Force in 1999 and served more than eight years on active duty as a rated instructor air battle manager. She is a Joint Force Level III-qualified officer with diverse active duty, Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard experience in roles including command and staff officer positions at the squadron and wing levels, state headquarters, the Air National Guard Readiness Center, the Joint Staff and the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command unified combatant command.
Col. Gellner graduated from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, in 1999, receiving dual Bachelor of Arts degrees in political science and Italian. She holds a Master of Arts degree in human relations from University of Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma, and a Master of Arts degree in national security and strategic studies from the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island. From 2009 to 2011, Col. Gellner worked in the private sector as a career trainer/counselor providing career consultations for federal civilian employees affected by Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC). Prior to her current position, the colonel was a student and Hattendorf Candidate at the U.S. Naval War College, Naval Station Newport, Rhode Island.
EDUCATION
1999 Bachelor of Arts, Political Science and Italian, Indiana University, Bloomington
1999 Aerospace Basic Course, Air Education and Training Command, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2001 Air Battle Manager Basic Course, Air Combat Command, Tyndall AFB, Fla.
2003 Air Surveillance Officer Course, Air Combat Command, Tinker AFB, Okla.
2005 Instructor Air Surveillance Officer Course, Air Combat Command, Tinker AFB, Okla.
2005 Squadron Officer School, Air University, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2007 Master of Arts, Human Relations, University of Oklahoma, Norman
2010 Logistics Officer Basic Course, Air Education and Training Command, Lackland AFB, Texas
2014 Air Command and Staff College, Air University, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence
2014 Inspector General Training Course, Air Force Inspection Agency, Andrews AFB, Md.
2015 Joint Advanced Professional Military Education (JPME II), National Defense University, Norfolk, Va.
2018 Air War College, Air University, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence
2018 Reserve Component National Security Course, National Defense University, Fort McNair, Va.
2018 Program Element Monitor (PEM), PPBE, ABIDES, Resource Allocation Programming, Washington, D.C.
2020 Indo-Pacific Orientation Course, Daniel K. Inouye Asia Pacific Center for Security Studies, Honolulu, Hawaii
2022 Master of Arts, National Security and Strategic Studies (with Graduate Certificate in Maritime History), U.S. Naval War College, Newport, R.I.
2023 Foundations in Artificial Intelligence (FAI), Senior Leader Development, Gladstone AI, Alexandria, Va.
ASSIGNMENTS
1. July 1999–September 2000, Air Battle Manager Student, 325th Training Squadron, Tyndall AFB, Fla.
2. September 2000–August 2005, Air Weapons Officer, Asst. Chief of Training, Air Surveillance Officer, Scheduling Officer in Charge, Tinker AFB, Okla.
3. August 2005–September 2007, Instructor Air Surveillance Officer, Flight Commander, Chief of Scheduling, 960th Airborne Air Operations Squadron, Kadena AB, Okinawa, Japan
4. September 2007–October 2009, Individual Ready Reserve
5. October 2009–April 2012, Operations Officer and Commander, 46th Aerial Port Squadron, Dover AFB, Del.
6. April 2012–March 2014, Wing Plans Officer, 144th Fighter Wing; Fuels Officer, 144th Logistics Readiness Squadron, Fresno Air National Guard Base, Calif.
7. March 2014–March 2015, Inspector General, Air National Guard Readiness Center, Joint Base Andrews, Md.
8. March 2015–August 2017, Branch Chief, A3Z Conversion Team, National Guard Bureau, Joint Base Andrews, Md.
9. August 2017–August 2018, Branch Chief, A5/8 Plans and Integration, NGB, Joint Base Andrews, Md.
10. August 2018–December 2019, Deputy Division Chief, J5 Western Hemisphere, Homeland Division, Pentagon, Washington, D.C.
11. December 2019–July 2021, Legislative Affairs Officer, J93, U.S Indo-Pacific Command, Camp Smith, Hawaii; Director, A5/8 Headquarters, Hawaii Air National Guard, Honolulu, Hawaii
12. July 2021–August 2022, Student and Hattendorf Candidate, Naval War College, Naval Station Newport, R.I.
13. August 2022–Present, Deputy Commander, 182nd Airlift Wing, Peoria, Ill.
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. August 2018–December 2019, Deputy Division Chief, J5 Western Hemisphere, Homeland Division, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Pentagon, Washington, D.C., as a lieutenant colonel
2. December 2019–May 2021, Legislative Affairs Officer, J93, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, Camp Smith, Hawaii, as a lieutenant colonel
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: Senior air battle manager
Flight hours: More than 1,600
Aircraft flown: E-3B/C
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Defense Meritorious Medal with oak leaf cluster
Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters
Air Medal with oak leaf cluster
Joint Service Commendation Medal
Air and Space Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS
2022 “With Distinction” honors, Naval War College
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant June 6, 1999
First Lieutenant June 6, 2001
Captain June 6, 2003
Major July 7, 2010
Lieutenant Colonel June 10, 2015
Colonel Aug. 9, 2022
(Current as of April 2024)