Col Merkel is the commander of the 128th Air Refueling Wing, General Mitchell Air National Guard Base, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He is responsible for more than 900 personnel assigned to the wing who support the worldwide mission and enable the combat employment of ten KC-135R Stratotankers. His command comprises four groups and a wing headquarters, providing ready and responsive airmen to meet state and national mission taskings.
Col Merkel is from Milwaukee and graduated from Marquette University in 1994 with a degree in Electrical Engineering. He commissioned into the Marine Corps through the Platoon
Leaders Course program in 1994 and attended Naval Flight School, earning his wings in July 1997. Col Merkel flew the F/A-18 Hornet and was stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, Calif. He deployed on the USS Stennis aircraft carrier to Iraq in 2000 and to Afghanistan in 2002. He was then assigned to Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron in Yuma, Ariz., and served as a weapons school instructor pilot from 2002 to 2005.
In 2006 he transferred to the Marine Corps Reserves where he flew the F-5 as an adversary pilot. In May 2009, Col Merkel transferred to the Wisconsin Air National Guard and joined the 115th Fighter Wing. He completed an F-16 transition course at Luke Air Force Base. As an F-16 pilot he deployed to Keflavik, Iceland; Djibouti, Africa; Kadena Air Base, Okinawa; Lask Air Base, Poland; and Kunsan Air Base, South Korea. He served as the Aerospace Control Alert (ACA) Commander from 2011 to 2013, and
Operations Support Squadron (OSS) Commander from 2013 to 2018. In February 2018 he stood up the F-35 Unit Conversion Office for the 115th Fighter Wing in preparation for the wing’s conversion from the F-16 to the F-35. Prior to his current position he served as Deputy Commander of the 115th Fighter Wing from December 2020 to February 2023, and Deputy Commander of the 128th Air Refueling Wing from February 2023 to February 2024.
Col Merkel is a command pilot with over 3600 flight hours in the KC-135R, F-16C/D, F/A-18C, F-5, TA-4J, T-2C, and T-34C.
EDUCATION
1993 Officer Candidates School, Marine Corps Base (MCB) Quantico, Va.
1994 Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wis
1995 The Basic School, MCB Quantico, Va
1997 Naval Flight School, Naval Air Station (NAS) Meridian, Miss.
1998 F/A-18 training, NAS Lemoore, Calif.
2009 F-16 training, Luke Air Force Base (AFB), Ariz.
2009 Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2014 Intermediate Development Course, Joint Base Andrews, Va.
2017 Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2019 Project Management Professional, Project Management Institute
2021 Commander’s Leadership Course, Joint Base Andrews, Va.
2023 KC-135 Senior Officer’s Course, Altus AFB, Altus, Ok.
ASSIGNMENTS
1. August 1994 – May 1995, MCB Quantico, Va.
2. June 1995 – September 1995, Student Naval Aviator, NAS Pensacola, Fla.
3. October 1995 – June 1996, Student Naval Aviator, NAS Whiting Field, Fla.
4. July 1996 – July 1997, Student Naval Aviator, NAS Meridian, Miss.
5. August 1997 – August 1998, F/A-18 Student Pilot, NAS Lemoore, Calif.
6. September 1998 – July 2002, F/A-18 Pilot, Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Miramar, San Diego, Calif.
7. August 2002 – December 2005, Weapons and Tactics Instructor, MCAS Yuma, Ariz.
8. January 2006 – April 2009, Adversary Pilot, MCAS Yuma, Ariz.
9. May 2009 – September 2009, F-16 Student Pilot, Luke Air Force Base (AFB), Phoenix, Ariz.
10. October 2009 – September 2011, F-16 Pilot, 115th Fighter Wing, Truax Field, Madison, Wis.
11. October 2011 – February 2013, Aerospace Control Alert Commander, 115th Fighter Wing, Truax Field, Wis.
12. March 2013 – February 2018, Operations Support Squadron Commander, 115th Fighter Wing, Truax Field, Wis.
13. March 2018 – November 2020, Director, F-35 Conversion Office, 115th Fighter Wing, Truax Field, Wis.
14. December 2020 – February 2023, Deputy Commander, 115th Fighter Wing, Truax Field, Wis.
15. March 2023 – February 2024, Deputy Commander, 128th Air Refueling Wing, Milwaukee, Wis.
16. February 2024 – present, Commander, 128th Air Refueling Wing, Milwaukee, Wis.
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: command pilot, civilian ATP rating
Flight hours: more than 3,600
Aircraft flown: KC-135R, F-16C, F/A-18, F-5, TA-4J, T-2C, and T-34C
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Air Medal
Aerial Achievement Medal
Joint Services Commendation Medal
Navy Commendation Medal
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant May 14, 1994
First Lieutenant May 14, 1996
Captain May 14, 1998
Major July 01, 2004
Lieutenant Colonel February 06, 2010
Colonel June 24, 2021
(Current as of March 2025)