{"id":434223,"date":"2025-12-08T22:36:16","date_gmt":"2025-12-08T22:36:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/434223\/"},"modified":"2025-12-08T22:36:16","modified_gmt":"2025-12-08T22:36:16","slug":"dvids-news-457th-fighter-squadron-welcomes-new-commander","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/434223\/","title":{"rendered":"DVIDS – News – 457th Fighter Squadron welcomes new commander"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n NAVAL AIR STATION JOINT RESERVE BASE FORT WORTH, Texas \u2013
Members of the 457th Fighter Squadron welcomed Lt. Col. Justin \u201cColt\u201d Lewis as their new commander during a change of command ceremony Dec. 6, 2025, at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Texas.
Col. David \u201cShave\u201d Snodgrass, 301st Operations Group commander, presided over the ceremony as Lt. Col. David E. \u201cTrigger\u201d Zeytoonjian relinquished command of the 457 FS to Lewis. The event marked the squadron\u2019s first change of command since completing its transition from the F-16 Fighting Falcon to the F-35A Lightning II.
In his remarks, Snodgrass highlighted Zeytoonjian\u2019s role in leading the Spads through their historic conversion.
\u201cWhat does a fighter squadron do when they don\u2019t have any fighters and there\u2019s no flying?\u201d Snodgrass asked. \u201cThat was the problem Trigger faced when he took command in January 2024. He led the team through the thousand tasks it took to stand up F-35 operations\u2014hiring pilots, building training profiles and syllabus, and moving into this new facility. Because of his leadership, the Reserve Command\u2019s first unit-equipped F-35 squadron is flying a full schedule today.\u201d
Snodgrass noted the squadron grew from two to more than 30 qualified F-35 pilots during Zeytoonjian\u2019s tenure and credited the entire team for keeping the conversion on timeline despite aircraft delivery delays, software challenges, and simulator shortfalls.
\u201cTrigger, your judgment, humility, and dedication have been key to every Spad success these past years,\u201d Snodgrass said. \u201cYou did your job well.\u201d
Snodgrass also expressed confidence in the squadron\u2019s new commander.
\u201cColt, your task now is to lead the Spads to full combat mission readiness as we exit conversion and prepare for future deployments,\u201d he said. \u201cYou\u2019re a hard-working leader and an excellent fighter pilot who truly cares about your people. I\u2019m supremely confident in your ability to take this team forward.\u201d
Speaking to the Spads, he referenced a favorite quote from legendary football coach Bill Belichick: \u201cDo your job.\u201d
\u201cNot only did you do your jobs, you did them extremely well,\u201d Zeytoonjian said. \u201cFrom zero flying capability in this jet to the brink of F-35 combat capability in about 20 months\u2014that was you. Your skill, professionalism, and determination to get things done despite every obstacle have been remarkable to watch. Thank you for giving me your very best. I love my family and I love the Spads. It\u2019s been an honor.\u201d
Following the formal reading of orders and passing of the guidon, Lewis addressed the squadron for the first time as commander. He spoke about the unique \u201cSpad culture\u201d that has shaped his nearly decade-long tenure in the unit and offered three words he believes define it.
\u201cFrom the outside looking in, you can\u2019t understand it, and from the inside looking out, you can\u2019t always explain it,\u201d he said. \u201cBut if I had to sum it up, a Spad is approachable, credible and\u2014when our nation calls\u2014violent.\u201d
He explained that approachability means visitors and new teammates are welcomed and helped, not ignored; credibility means every airman is responsible for being tactically ready in the F-35; and controlled, professional violence refers to the decisive, rapid action the squadron must be prepared to deliver in combat.
\u201cWe are not a flying club\u2014we are a fighter squadron,\u201d Lewis said. \u201cRapid, violent action is required when demanded by America, and the Spads will provide that wherever we\u2019re sent.\u201d
Lewis closed by pledging his support to the airmen he now leads.
\u201cI\u2019ve learned from every Spad commander I\u2019ve served under, and I\u2019ll do my best to give you everything you need to be successful,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you take care of the Spads, I will take care of you. I love the Spads to the bone.\u201d
The 457th Fighter Squadron, assigned to the 301st Operations Group, 301st Fighter Wing, is an Air Force Reserve Command unit based at NAS JRB Fort Worth. The squadron flies the F-35A Lightning II and trains combat-ready airmen to support worldwide contingency operations in defense of the nation. <\/p>\n


\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\nDate Taken:<\/td>\n

<\/p>\n12.06.2025<\/td>\n


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<\/p>\n <\/p>\nDate Posted:<\/td>\n

<\/p>\n12.08.2025 17:23<\/td>\n


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<\/p>\n <\/p>\nStory ID:<\/td>\n

<\/p>\n553459<\/td>\n


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<\/p>\nFORT WORTH, US<\/td>\n


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<\/p>\n4<\/td>\n


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<\/p>\n0<\/td>\n


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\n PUBLIC DOMAIN \u00a0
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This work, 457th Fighter Squadron welcomes new commander, by SSgt William Downs<\/a>, identified by DVIDS<\/a>, must comply with the restrictions shown on https:\/\/www.dvidshub.net\/about\/copyright<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" NAVAL AIR STATION JOINT RESERVE BASE FORT WORTH, Texas \u2013Members of the 457th Fighter Squadron welcomed Lt.…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":434224,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5138],"tags":[5229,7371,7372,358,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-434223","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fort-worth","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-fort-worth","10":"tag-fortworth","11":"tag-texas","12":"tag-tx","13":"tag-united-states","14":"tag-united-states-of-america","15":"tag-unitedstates","16":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","17":"tag-us","18":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115686342429042448","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/434223","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=434223"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/434223\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/434224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=434223"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=434223"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=434223"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}