Brig. Gen. Joseph D. Janik is the Inspector General, Headquarters Air Force Reserve Command, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. He provides the command's leadership an independent assessment of unit readiness and compliance within established directives, evaluates leadership effectiveness, management performance, aspects of unit culture and command climate, and the ability to minimize waste and prevent fraud and abuse. He also ensures the existence of responsive inquiry and complaint resolution characterized by objectivity, integrity, and impartiality.
Brig. Gen. Janik is a native of New York and began his career as a Tactical Aircraft Maintenance Specialist, assigned to Royal Air Force Upper Heyford, United Kingdom, in 1988. After completing his four-year active-duty tour, he joined the Air Force Reserve with the 328th Airlift Squadron, Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station, New York as a C-130 Flight Engineer. After earning a Bachelor of Science from the State University of New York at Buffalo, he was commissioned at Officer Training School, Maxwell AFB, Alabama. He attended Undergraduate Pilot Training at Columbus AFB, Mississippi. and Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas. After graduating from UPT in 1998, he returned to the 328th Airlift Squadron, flying the C-130 and eventually working as the Chief of Standardization and Evaluation. He has flown combat missions in support of Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom. Prior to his current assignment, Brig. Gen. Janik served as the Wing Commander for the 439th Airlift Wing, Westover Air Reserve Base, Massachusetts.
EDUCATION
1992 Community College of the Air Force, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala., by correspondence
1996 Bachelor of Science, Business Administration, State University of New York at Buffalo
2005 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence
2007 Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence
2013 Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by seminar/correspondence
2013 Master of Aeronautical Science, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Fla., by correspondence
2014 Naval War College Reserve Officer Joint Maritime Operations, Newport, R.I.
2015 Reserve Component National Security Course, National Defense University, Washington, D.C.
2023 NATO Senior Officer Policy Course, Oberammergau, Germany
2023 Senior Leadership Orientation Course
2024 Air Force Enterprise Leadership Seminar, The University of North Carolina Kenan-Flagler Business School, Chapel Hill
2024 Continuous Improvement and Innovation for Executives, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
ASSIGNMENTS
1. June 1989–June 1991, Tactical Aircraft Maintenance Specialist, 20th Fighter Wing, Royal Air Force Upper Heyford, United Kingdom
2. June 1991–December 1992, Tactical Aircraft Maintenance Specialist, 27th Fighter Wing, Cannon Air Force Base, N.M.
3. September 1993–June 1996, C-130 Flight Engineer, 328th Airlift Squadron, Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station, N.Y.
4. June 1996–October 1996, Student, Officer Training School, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
5. October 1996–December 1996, Student Pilot, Initial Flight Screening, Lackland AFB, Texas
6. February 1997–July 1997, Student Pilot, Columbus AFB, Miss.
7. July 1997–March 1998, Student Pilot, Naval Air Station, Corpus Christi, Texas
8. March 1998–November 2008, C-130H Pilot, Chief Pilot, 328th Airlift Squadron, Niagara Falls ARS, N.Y.
9. November 2008–September 2011, Chief, Standardization/Evaluation, 914th Operations Group, Niagara Falls ARS, N.Y.
10. September 2011–July 2014, Operations Commander, 22nd Air Force/Detachment 1, Little Rock AFB, Ark.
11. July 2014–September 2014, Commander, 327th Airlift Squadron, Little Rock AFB, Ark.
12. September 2014–November 2016, Commander, 914th Operations Group, Niagara Falls ARS, N.Y.
13. November 2016–November 2017, Director, Operations/Readiness, 22nd Air Force/A3/A5, Dobbins Air Reserve Base, Ga.
14. November 2017–February 2019, Vice Commander, 910th Airlift Wing, Youngstown ARS, Ohio
15. February 2019–April 2021, Commander, 910th Airlift Wing, Youngstown ARS, Ohio (January 2020–May 2020, Director of Mobility Forces, Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar)
16. April 2021–January 2023, Commander, 439th Airlift Wing, Westover ARB, Mass.
17. January 2023–present, Inspector General, Air Force Reserve Command, Robins AFB, Ga.
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. August 2014, Mobility and Airlift Operations Lead, Joint Air Component Coordination Element team, supporting the Republic of Korea’s 2nd Operational Command, as a lieutenant colonel
2. August 2018, Pacific Sentry, Deputy Director of Mobility Forces, as a colonel
3. January 2020–May 2020, U.S. Air Forces Central, Director of Mobility Forces, as a colonel
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: command pilot
Flight hours: more than 4000 military flight hours and over 3,000 civilian flight hours
Aircraft flown: T-37, T-44, C-130, C-5M
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster
Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters
Air Medal with oak leaf cluster
Aerial Achievement Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Air and Space Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
Air and Space Achievement Medal
Meritorious Unit Award
Air and Space Outstanding Unit Award with "V" device and oak leaf cluster
Combat Readiness Medal with oak leaf cluster
Air Reserve Forces Meritorious Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
National Defense Service Medal with bronze star
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
(Current as of January 2025)