Colonel Aaron C. Baum is the Deputy Commander of the 341st Missile Wing, at Malmstrom AFB, Montana. He is the second in command of one of the most powerful combat wings in the world with one-third of the nation's Minuteman III nuclear alert force. In absence of the Wing Commander, Col. Baum directs the activities of 4,186 personnel while ensuring the operational readiness, maintenance, security and support of 150 Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles and managing resources valued at over $6 billion and a $95 million budget.
Col. Baum comes from Memphis, Tennessee, and was commissioned in 2005 as a distinguished graduate from the Reserve Officer Training Corps at Brigham Young University. He is dual qualified as both a Minuteman III missile operator and a Foreign Affairs Officer (FAO). As a missile operator, Col. Baum has served in various positions at the squadron, group, wing, and Numbered Air Force levels. His duties included Missile Combat Crew Commander and Senior Instructor in the 90th Operations Group, Deputy Director of the Commander’s Action Group at 20 AF, Chief of Safety for the 90th Missile Wing, Commander of the 12th Missile Squadron and Deputy Commander of the 341st Operations Group. As a FAO, Col. Baum served as an operational planner for the Strategy, Plans, and Programs Directorate at US Africa Command in Stuttgart, Germany where he helped develop the Command’s Theater Campaign Plan. Prior to his current assignment, he was the Joint Staff’s Chief for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Policy where he provided recommendations on nuclear posture, planning, and strategy to support the Chairman and Secretary of War’s advice to the President of the United States.
EDUCATION
2005 Bachelor of Science, Zoology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT
2011 Master of Arts, Intelligence Studies, American Military University, Charles Town, WV
2011 Squadron Officer School, in residence, Maxwell Air Force Base, AL
2014 Associate’s Degree, French Studies, Defense Language Institute, Monterey, CA
2014 Master of Arts, Security Studies with emphasis on Sub-Sahara Africa, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA
2018 Master of Military Operational Art and Science, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, AL
2019 Master of Philosophy, Military Strategy, School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, Maxwell AFB, AL
2023 Master of Arts, National Resource Strategy, Eisenhower School, National Defense University, Washington D.C.
ASSIGNMENTS
1. October 2005 – July 2006, Student, Prerequisite Officer Space 100 Training/ICBM Operations Training (REACT-A), Vandenberg AFB, CA
2. July 2006 – July 2008, ICBM Combat Crew Deputy Commander then ICBM Instructor Deputy Combat Crew Commander, 90th Missile Wing, F.E. Warren AFB, WY
3. July 2008 – December 2009, ICBM Combat Crew Commander then Assistant Flight Commander, then ICBM Instructor Combat Crew Commander, 90th Missile Wing, F.E. Warren AFB, WY
4. December 2009 – July 2010, ICBM Senior Instructor Combat Crew Commander, 90th Missile Wing, F.E. Warren AFB, WY
5. July 2010 – September 2011, Chief, Technical Order Policy then Chief, Standardization and Evaluation, Programs, Twentieth Air Force, F.E. Warren AFB, WY
6. September 2011 – December 2012, Deputy Director, Commander’s Action Group, Twentieth Air Force, F.E. Warren AFB, WY
7. December 2012 – December 2013, Student, Defense Language Institute, Monterey, CA
8. December 2013 – March 2015, Student, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA
9. March 2015 – July 2017, Operational Planner, J-5 Strategy, Plans and Programs Directorate, United States Africa Command,
USAG Stuttgart, Germany
10. July 2017 – June 2018, Student, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, AL
11. June 2018 – June 2019, Student, School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, Maxwell AFB, AL
12. June 2019 – June 2020, Chief of Safety, 90th Missile Wing, F.E. Warren AFB, WY
13. June 2020 – June 2022, Commander, 12th Missile Squadron, 341st Missile Wing, Malmstrom AFB, MT
14. June 2022 – Jul 2023, Deputy Commander, 341st Operations Group, Malmstrom AFB, MT
15. July 2023 – July 2024, Student, Eisenhower School for National Security, National Defense University, Washington D.C.
16. July 2024 – June 2026, Chief, Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Policy Division, Joint Staff J-5 Directorate for Strategy, Plans,
and Policy, Pentagon, Washington D.C.
17. June 2026 – Present, Deputy Commander, 341st Missile Wing, Malmstrom AFB, MT
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. March 2015 – July 2017, Operational Planner, J-5 Strategy, Plans and Programs Directorate, United States Africa Command,
USAG Stuttgart, Germany, as a major
2. July 2024 – June 2026, Chief, Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Policy Division, Joint Staff J-5 Directorate for Strategy, Plans,
and Policy, Pentagon, Washington D.C., as a colonel
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Defense Superior Service Medal
Defense Meritorious Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Air and Space Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
Joint Service Achievement Medal
Air and Space Achievement Medal
OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS
2006 Top Graduate, Prerequisite Officer Space 100 Training/ICBM Operations Training (REACT-A)
2011 Space and Missile Operator of the Year, Air Force Global Strike Command
2013 Distinguished Graduate, Defense Language Institute
2018 Distinguished Graduate, Air Command and Staff College
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant September 6, 2005
First Lieutenant September 6, 2007
Captain September 6, 2009
Major February 1, 2016
Lieutenant Colonel October 1, 2018
Colonel April 1, 2024
(Current as of June 2026)