CREECH AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. -- A change of command ceremony marked new beginnings and honored past legacy as Col. Nicholas Pederson relinquished command of the 432nd Wing/432nd Air Expeditionary Wing to Col. Trevor Merrell at Creech Air Force Base, Nevada, June 27, 2025.
Pederson has led the 432nd Wing since 2023. Its mission is to operate and support the MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted aircraft, which provides intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and precision attack capabilities to provide critical support to combat operations and the United States’ national security.
“Thank you for the privilege of my life. You make the difficult look easy and took the fight to the enemy. I am incredibly proud that I will always be able to say that I was a part of the 432nd Wing,” said Pederson.
The 432nd Air Expeditionary Wing, activated in 2012, is the only one of its kind located in the continental United States, and remotely operates the MQ-9 Reaper four different combatant commands.
During the ceremony, Pederson was honored with the Legion of Merit for his service to the United States as Commander. His accomplishments include enabling 358,000 flight hours during 15,600 missions, and doubling the remotely piloted aircraft allocated airspace over the Nevada Test and Training Range, which empowered robust training as the Wing implemented the Air Force's Force Generation model.
After receiving the Legion of Merit, Pederson addressed the crowd and had parting words of wisdom for Merrell and incoming Command Chief Master Sergeant Mark Diehl.
“I wish you both the best of luck and honestly, with the Airmen of this wing, you won’t need luck. You will get to see them do amazing things,” said Pederson.
Merrell assumes his new position as a current member of the 432nd Wing. Since 2023, he has served as the 25th Attack Group commander at Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., leading more than 1,000 personnel across five squadrons, located at three geographically separated installations.
In his first time addressing the Airmen now under his command, Merrell said, “To the men and women of the 432nd Wing, I feel a lot of emotions right now; gratitude, humility, but most of all, I think I will share what both Chief Diehl and I feel—excited. Excited to be here and excited to join this incredible family.”
In his new position, Merrell will oversee the remissioning of the 11th Attack Squadron and the 489th Attack Squadron from satellite launch and recovery to conventional MQ-9 operations, the arrival of a contingent of Experimental Operations Unit personnel to conduct early experimental operations with the Collaborative Combat Aircraft.