Colonel Elizabeth A.D. Hanson

Elizabeth A.D. Hanson serves in the United States Air Force. She is the Commander of the 305th Air Mobility Wing (AMW), based in Lakehurst, New Jersey.

Colonel Hanson has over 3,500 hours of pilot-in-command experience, flying theC-17A Globemaster transport and KC-46 aerial refueling jet, as well as the T-37 and T1A jet fighters.

The 305th AMW is responsible for two of Air Mobility Command’s busiest aerial ports, ensuring uninterrupted flow of forces and material in support of ongoing global operations. As Commander, Colonel Hanson is responsible for overseeing all air operations at McGuire Field and Lakehurst Maxfield Field runways. 

Colonel Hanson has also served as a C-17A instructor pilot at the USAF Weapons School, and has worked with the Nation’s highest defense research and teaching institution at the Defense Advanced Projects Agency.

Colonel Hanson has been deployed, flying 578 hours in combat. She has been awarded the Defense Superior Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with four Oak Leaf Clusters, the Air Medal with three Oak Leaf Clusters, the Joint Commendation Medal, and the Air Force Commendation Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster. 

A graduate from Bethlehem High School, Colonel Hanson attended Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), participating in the Reserve Officer Training Corps. While there, she had the opportunity to fly on Army helicopters, sparking her interest in aviation and service to our country in the military.

She graduated from RPI in 1998 with a Bachelor of Science in Aeronautical and Mechanical Engineering. She then earned a Master of Science, National Resource Strategy, Eisenhower School, National Defense University, Fort McNair in Washington, D.C.