HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. -- The Department of the Air Force Portfolio Acquisition Executive for Command, Control, Communications and Battle Management ceremonially changed hands, here, Aug. 28, 2026, and publicly welcomed Brig. Gen. Joshua Williams as its new PAE and bid farewell to Lt. Gen. Jason Voorheis.
While Williams officially assumed leadership of the PAE on July 31, the ceremony served as the traditional military transfer of authority and responsibility between the two leaders. William D. Bailey, preforming the duties of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, presided.
“This is one of the most complex PAEs in the acquisition portfolio,” Bailey said. “As the third leader of this directorate, part of the objective should be ‘normalization,’ scaling the capability and expanding the reach of the directorate ... growing it into a fully armed, integrating PAE.”
Williams brings extensive acquisition and leadership experience to the position, most recently serving as the PAE for the Cyber and Networks Directorate at Hanscom.
“Change is constant,” Williams said. “This is just today’s version of it. What’s not changing is the mission or our standards. The expectation that we deliver what we promised, when we promised it, to the people whose lives depend on it. Keep an open mind and know that it’s an honor for me to be leading C3BM, and something I don’t take lightly or for granted.”
In his new role, Williams will lead the integration of the C3BM materiel enterprise, aligning technical architecture and acquisition authorities to streamline the delivery of capabilities via the DAF Battle Network.
“While my time here was brief, it was one of my most rewarding experiences throughout my career,” said Lt. Gen. Jason Voorheis, the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center commander. “The mission ahead does not pause. Never stop challenging legacy processes that slow down capability delivery.”
The transition marked the next step for Voorheis, who recently assumed command of AFLCMC at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. Voorheis will continue to partner with C3BM to ensure the integration of systems and technical architectures across the department.
“We’re an integrating PAE,” Williams said. “We influence more than we own. That means we play a different game than every other acquisition organization in the department, and we have to be better at it than anyone else. This is my third PAE opportunity, and I believe I have been given this opportunity to extend the momentum built to date and to drive the connective tissue across C3BM, our divisions and our programs.”
The DAF Battle Network, which Williams now oversees, is the integrated system of systems connecting sensor, effector, and logistics systems. Integrating roughly 50 programs of record, it serves as the DAF’s contribution to Combined Joint All Domain Command and Control, ensuring resilient decision advantage for the Air Force, Space Force, joint and coalition forces.