Maj. Gen. Marcus Annibale speaks after taking command of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, Japan, July 12, 2024. (Brian McElhiney/Stars and Stripes)
MARINE CORPS AIR STATION FUTENMA, Okinawa — A Marine Corps general returned to this air station from Washington, D.C., to take command Friday of the Marines’ air wing in the Indo-Pacific.
Maj. Gen. Marcus B. Annibale, a former Harrier pilot with 2,200 flight hours and more than 30 years in the Corps, assumed command of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing from Maj. Gen. Eric E. Austin at a ceremony on Futenma’s flight line.
Annibale, previously director of the Navy’s Expeditionary Warfare Division in Virginia, served from 2013 to 2015 on Okinawa as the wing’s assistant chief of staff for plans and operations.
Annibale takes over the wing during heightened tensions with China, whose navy patrols the seas surrounding Okinawa and whose coast guard is setting records for the days it spends near the Senkaku Islands, about 300 miles west of Okinawa. Japan administers the islands, but China and Taiwan also claim them.
“You all have led with unbelievable grace, unbelievable poise, unbelievable determination and really strong grit to work through all the challenges that we face as we look at this very difficult security situation that we now have in the Western Pacific,” III Marine Expeditionary Force Commander Lt. Gen. Roger B. Turner said at the ceremony, attended by about 260 guests and 300 Marines in formation.
Austin, a graduate of Kubasaki High School, a Defense Department school on Camp Foster, where the wing is headquartered, assumed command in August 2022. He is also a former Harrier pilot and has flown in the same units as Annibale.
Maj. Gen. Eric Austin, right, outgoing commander of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, embraces incoming commander Maj. Gen. Marcus Annibale on July 12, 2024, at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, Japan. (Brian McElhiney/Stars and Stripe)
The 1st Marine Aircraft Wing is the aviation element of the III Marine Expeditionary Force and consists of approximately 7,500 Marines and sailors in three aircraft groups at Marine Corps Air Stations Futenma and Iwakuni in Japan and Kaneohe Bay in Hawaii. The wing includes an array of aircraft from F/A-18 and F-35B fighters to MV-22 Osprey tiltrotors and AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters.
The wing provides offensive air support, anti-air support, aerial reconnaissance and electronic countermeasures.
Annibale, standing in front of one of the wing’s KC-130J Super Hercules on the flight line, stressed he will lead the wing with a people-first mentality.
“Our Marines and sailors, our families, our civilian workforce are absolutely the real important platforms,” he said. “We fight and train as a team, and I’m a big proponent of the mantra, mission first, people always.”
He also highlighted the importance of working with Japan, even as the relationship between the U.S. military and the Okinawa community has been strained in recent weeks due to two indictments of service members on sexual assault charges that were made public in June.
“I also acknowledge the importance and criticality of allies and important partners in this region, especially the criticality of the U.S.-Japan alliance and the power behind that relationship,” Annibale said. “And I hope to take it to new heights.”
Austin highlighted the wing’s modernization efforts as he relinquished command.
“First MAW focused on people, readiness and modernization, and it seems to be working,” Austin said.
Annibale, of Fairfax, Va., previously commanded Marine Attack Squadron 513 and Marine Aircraft Group 13, of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, according to his official Navy biography.
He flew combat missions in Iraq during Operation Southern Watch in the 1990s and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
His personal decorations include a Legion of Merit with two Gold Stars, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal with Gold Star, the Air Medal with Strike Numeral Two, the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with Gold Star and the Marine Corps Achievement Medal with two Gold Stars.
Austin was confirmed for promotion to lieutenant general and heads to Quantico, Va., to serve as deputy commander of Combat Development and Integration for the Marine Corps Combat Development Command.
