Brigadier General Denise Donnell will become the first female officer to head the 5,900-member New York Air National Guard, Gov. Kathy Hochul's office announced Saturday.

Donnell replaces the retiring Major General Timothy LaBarge, who led the New York Air National Guard since 2018.

“Brigadier General Denise Donnell, who served in the United States Navy from 1993 to 2002, is a command pilot with over 4,400 hours of flying time, including 280 hours in combat,” the Governor’s Office said in a statement. “She has flown the Navy's P-3 Orion anti-submarine and maritime surveillance aircraft, the Air Force's C-5A Galaxy, LC-130 Hercules "Skibird" and the C-17 Globemaster III, and has commanded at the squadron, group and wing levels. As a naval aviator, Donnell served as an evaluator pilot, mission commander, and quality assurance officer assigned to Patrol Squadron 46, Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington. Prior to joining the New York Air National Guard, she served as operational test director assigned to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 1 at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland.”

“I've always said our most valuable resource is our people,” Adjutant General for the State of New York Major General Raymond Shields said in a statement. “Without our service members, we simply cannot be successful. This change of command between Major General Tim LaBarge and Brigadier General Denise Donnell demonstrates our military's ability to smoothly transition leadership from one senior leader to the next. I am so pleased to welcome Brigadier General Donnell to her new role leading the New York Air National Guard, while also wishing the very best to Major General LaBarge and his wife Petra as they begin a new chapter in their lives. Tim, you will be missed. Thank you for leaving the 5,900 members of the New York Air National Guard in capable hands with Denise."

Donnell is a Clifton Park resident. A change of command ceremony took place Saturday at New York National Guard headquarters in Latham.

The Governor’s Office says the New York Air National Guard is the largest state contingent among the nationwide 101,000-member Air National Guard.