{"id":16903,"date":"2019-03-08T16:32:47","date_gmt":"2019-03-08T16:32:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2019\/03\/08\/air-force-secretary-wilson-resigning\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T20:20:44","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T20:20:44","slug":"air-force-secretary-wilson-resigning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/air\/2019\/03\/08\/air-force-secretary-wilson-resigning\/","title":{"rendered":"Air Force Secretary Wilson to resign in May, return to academia"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson<\/a> will resign at the end of May and take a job in academia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Air Force released a statement Friday morning, after Reuters broke the news<\/a> of her impending resignation, that said Wilson will resign effective May 31, once the University of Texas Board of Regents officially votes to approve her as president of the University of Texas at El Paso. That approval is all but assured, as the regents Friday morning voted unanimously to make Wilson the sole finalist to be the UT El Paso president<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt has been a privilege to serve alongside our airmen<\/a> over the past two years, and I am proud of the progress that we have made restoring our nation\u2019s defense,\u201d Wilson said. \u201cWe have improved the readiness of the force<\/a>; we have cut years out of acquisition schedules and gotten better prices through competition; we have repealed hundreds of superfluous regulations; and we have strengthened our ability to deter and dominate in space.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In her resignation letter to President Trump<\/a>, released by the Pentagon, Wilson said her May 31 resignation should allow enough time for a smooth transition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI very much appreciate the opportunity to have served,\u201d Wilson said in her letter. \u201cI remain a strong advocate for our nation\u2019s defense and an airman for life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump tweeted out congratulations to Wilson Friday afternoon, said she \u201chas done an absolutely fantastic job\u201d as Air Force secretary, and thanked her for her service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wilson has been Air Force secretary for about two years, but her tenure has seemed precarious in recent months as she reportedly clashed with White House officials \u2014 and now-acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan \u2014 over President Trump\u2019s plans to create a Space Force. In October, Foreign Policy reported that Trump was planning to fire Wilson after the midterm elections over her perceived slow-rolling of his Space Force order. The report said Shanahan was particularly angered by Wilson\u2019s Space Force position.<\/p>\n\n\n\t