Japanese Minister of Defense Shinjiro Koizumi greets Maj. Gen. Joel Carey at U.S. Indo-Pacific Command headquarters in Hawaii, Jan. 12, 2026. (John Bellino/U.S. Navy)
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan — A newly promoted lieutenant general will take command of 5th Air Force in Tokyo, a role that until recently was held by the head of U.S. Forces Japan but has now been split as the command expands into a broader mission.
The Senate confirmed Maj. Gen. Joel Carey’s promotion to three-star rank on Jan. 30 along with his appointment to lead 5th Air Force, a position until now held by the commander of U.S. Forces Japan, also an Air Force lieutenant general.
“This change is in support of the U.S. Forces-Japan transformation into a joint force headquarters and allows for a dedicated focus on the unique operational requirements of each headquarters,” 5th Air Force spokeswoman Capt. Tisha Yates said by email Thursday.
The two commands were never really combined, but have been under one commander wearing two hats since the creation of USFJ on July 1, 1957, according to Yates.
Former Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in July 2024 announced plans to transform USFJ, a liaison command, into a joint force headquarters “with expanded missions and operational responsibilities,” he said at the time. The change aligned with Japan’s creation in March of a Self-Defense Forces Joint Operation Command.
Lt. Gen. Stephen Jost remains USFJ’s commander, a position he’s held since October 2024.
Carey was nominated for the 5th Air Force spot on Dec. 18 and promotion by President Donald Trump. USFJ and 5th Air Force are both headquartered at Yokota, an airlift hub in western Tokyo. A change of command ceremony has not yet been scheduled, Yates said.
As 5th Air Force commander, Carey will oversee about 15,000 airmen and Defense Department civilians at three major installations: the 374th Airlift wing at Yokota; the 35th Fighter Wing at Misawa Air Base in northeastern Honshu; and the 18th Wing at Kadena Air Base on Okinawa.
Carey — call sign Joker — in August 2024 became chief of staff at Indo-Pacific Command under Adm. Samuel Paparo. INDOPACOM spans 36 countries and includes 380,000 service members and DOD civilians, according to the general’s official Air Force biography.
Carey’s military resume shows a steady progression from ROTC cadet at Baylor University in 1992 to the Joint Chiefs of Staff and NATO component command.
“His assignments have included command of an operational fighter squadron, vice commander of two air expeditionary wings and commander of three wings, including a flying training wing, air expeditionary wing and large combat wing,” his biography states.
He served in a catalog of operations, from Deliberate Force — the 1995 air campaign over the Balkans to stymie Serbia’s attacks on Bosnia and Herzegovina — to Enduring Freedom, providing air support in the long war against the Taliban in Afghanistan, and its follow-up operation, Freedom Sentinel.
The 5th Air Force is the service’s oldest continuously serving numbered command, according to its website. It was established as the Far East Air Force in the Philippines in September 1941 and became 5th Air Force a year later.
It took part in Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s island-hopping campaign across the Pacific during World War II. Two of its WWII-era pilots — Majs. Richard Bong and Thomas McGuire — are the top-scoring aces in U.S. history.
The organization played a supporting role during the Vietnam War and had responsibility for operations on the Korean Peninsula until 1986 and the creation of 7th Air Force.
Fifth Air Force today focuses on building and strengthening the alliance with Japan through initiatives with the Air Self-Defense Force, according to the organization’s website.
