LAKEHURST – A change of command ceremony will take place this week when Base Commander U.S. Air Force Col. Anthony L. Smith, who also serves as the leader of the 87th Air Base Wing, will relinquish command to Col. Michael D. Stefanovic.
Col. Smith assumed command in June 2023 and has since overseen installation support for 88 mission partners and more than 48,000 service members, civilians, and family members across the Department of Defense’s only tri-service joint base.
During his tenure, JBMDL earned recognition for its commitment to global readiness, deploying over 800 personnel to 16 locations worldwide. The wing also validated Agile Combat Employment concepts and achieved Air Mobility Command’s highest cyber defense rating, officials said.
Commissioned through the Air Force ROTC at Fayetteville State University in May 1997, Col. Smith has served in various positions at the wing, center, major command, Air Force, and defense agency levels, including commanding at the squadron and group levels. Prior to his current position, he was the Director for Financial Management and Comptroller at Headquarters Air Mobility Command, overseeing a $15 billion annual program and supporting more than 800 financial managers worldwide.
Smith told The Manchester Times last month that he was, “heading down to the Pentagon after this assignment. What I will miss about this place is that for one, it is a unique installation. There are a lot of things that only happen here the way we are structured.”
“We have several Joint Bases but this is the only one that has three services joined together to become a joint base. We have two deputy base commanders to represent the other branches (Army and Navy),” Smith added.
Smith noted the relationship between the three military branches. “I have never seen it better than the way we have it structured here and the folks who are in that seat here. I will miss that.”
Reflecting on his career, Smith said, “you sometimes get to go to some extraordinary places and some places you would like to avoid going back to but what you tend to remember and rely on the most are the relationships you have at that time.”
“The individuals I’ve worked with during my command tour here in the last 23 months have been phenomenal,” he added. He said that through teamwork, “we have been able to execute a relationship to make Joint Base to function the way it needs to. Those relationships I will miss the most.”
Col. Stefanovic, the incoming commander, will be installed at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, June 17. He most recently served as the commander of the 87th Civil Engineer Group at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst. In this role, he oversaw comprehensive installation support operations, including emergency management, fire and explosive ordnance disposal response, infrastructure maintenance and development, engineering design, environmental stewardship, housing management, and rapid recovery operations.
The incoming commander has a background in explosive ordnance disposal and has served in various civil engineer assignments at the squadron, wing, major command, and Headquarters Air Force levels. He has also served as the Director of the Strategic Studies Institute for the Air Force, focusing on air dominance and innovation.
