A commander who oversaw all of the nuclear missile maintenance at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana has been fired from his role following a command-directed investigation.
Col. Jeremy Russell, the commander of Malmstrom’s 341st Maintenance Group, was removed from his role “due to a loss of trust and confidence in Russell’s ability to command,” according to a Wednesday news release from the base.
Capt. Rachel Brinegar, a 341st Missile Wing spokesperson, told Military.com in an emailed statement that Russell faced a command-directed investigation but did not provide additional details. It’s not clear what the cause of the probe was related to or whether he’s facing other disciplinary measures.
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It’s uncommon for service officials to give details behind a commander’s firing. Explanations often rely on some version of a “loss of trust and confidence” and frequently cite the federal Privacy Act as a reason for not providing more information.
A command-directed investigation is an administrative probe and is viewed as “an extension of the commander’s authority to investigate and to correct problems within the command,” according to the Department of the Air Force manual.
Uniform Code of Military Justice experts have told Military.com that a command-directed investigation can severely harm careers and, depending on the allegations, can lead to criminal investigations too.
Russell’s biography was removed, but a copy of it archived on the internet detailed his background. He was responsible for more than 500 airmen and in charge of overseeing sustainment and modernization of all 150 Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles at Malmstrom, according to the bio.
He started as an enlisted airman coming out of high school in 1995. When he was a staff sergeant, he was accepted to attend Officer Training School where, after commissioning, he worked on Minuteman and Peacekeeper ICBMs, B61 nuclear weapons, and the Air Force’s largest conventional stockpile, according to the biography.
Prior to starting his role in July 2023 as commander of Malmstrom’s 341st Maintenance Group, Russell served as the commander of Detachment 3 for the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center at Hill Air Force Base in Utah, and the branch chief for U.S. European Command’s Nuclear Surety and Policy stationed in Stuttgart, Germany.
Russell’s firing comes amid several recent leadership shake-ups at America’s nuclear missile and bomber bases.
In August, Col. Mark Kimball, the 28th Operations Group commander at Ellsworth Air Force Base, was removed his leadership role following a damning Accident Investigation Board report that, in part, blamed “an unhealthy organizational culture that permitted degradation of airmanship skills” as a reason behind a Jan. 4 crash of a B-1B Lancer bomber at the South Dakota installation.
The base said Kimball’s firing was based on the findings in the crash report.
A month later, in September, Lt. Col. Carsten Stahr, commander of the 28th Force Support Squadron at Ellsworth, was relieved from duty “due to loss of trust and confidence.” Air Force Global Strike Command officials did not provide additional details but clarified the firing wasn’t connected to the crash report.
Last year, two commanders and four subordinates at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, were fired from their jobs.
Col. Gregory Mayer, the commander of the 5th Mission Support Group, and Maj. Jonathan Welch, commander of the 5th Logistics Readiness Squadron, were removed, an action that was “necessary to maintain the very high standards we demand of those units entrusted with supporting our nation’s nuclear mission,” officials told Military.com at the time.
