Ohio Air National Guard gets first woman command chief

HUBER HEIGHTS, Ohio (AP) — A Dayton area woman has been chosen as the Ohio Air National Guard’s first black and first female state command chief.

The state command chief is the senior enlisted airman for the guard. The guard says Chief Master Sgt. Tamara Phillips will serve as mentor and guide to 5,000 airmen, including her daughter and son.

Guard officials say 41-year-old Phillips, of Huber Heights, also was the first female chief for the Springfield-based 178th Fighter Wing in 2005.

Phillips enlisted in the 168th Air Refueling Wing at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska in 1987. She transferred to the Air Force Reserves 445th Airlift Wing at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base before enlisting in the Ohio Air National Guard.