JoAnne S. Bass (/bæs/) (born June 15, 1974) is a retired senior noncommissioned officer in the United States Air Force and the nineteenth Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force. She became the Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force, and the first female to hold the highest senior enlisted rank in any United States military branch, on August 14, 2020,[3] having been selected for the position on June 19.[4] She is also the first person of Asian-American descent to hold the highest senior enlisted position in the Air Force.[5] At the time of her selection, she was the Second Air Force's Command Chief Master Sergeant at Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi, which she had reported to in July 2018.[6]Air Force News reported "incoming Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. CQ Brown said Bass brings skills, temperament and experience that the job requires and an outlook on leadership that meshes with his own", and that he "could not be more excited to work side-by-side with Chief Bass."[4]
Early life
Bass is originally from Mililani, Oahu, Hawaii.[7] Her mother is of Korean descent and her father is a retired United States Army warrant officer. Her family lived in many stateside and overseas locations.[5]
Bass was succeeded by CCM David A. Flosi on March 8, 2024 before her retirement.[9]
Social media use
In October 2020, when an airman posted a comment on a Facebook post asking about the correct pronunciation of her last name, Bass posted "[S]eems like you and a few of your friends enjoy trolling our Air Force sites. Give me a call Monday … I’d like to chat about it." She also posted, "My team has [their] info … as well as his crew". Bass later updated the Facebook page to say, "Teammates — I just had a good conversation with SSgt Banks. His question was simple and honest, but having him and a group of people ask it repeatedly across multiple posts was trolling."[10]
In January 2021, she shared a post on her official Facebook page highlighting an airman’s efforts to help out other single parents, thanking the airman "for making a difference" and sharing an article the airman wrote about the struggle of "wearing many hats" as an airman and mother. Bass was criticized for sharing the story, which portrayed the airman's ex-husband unfairly. Bass took down the post and apologized, writing "That was my blind spot and I owned it … because I didn’t see how that commentary could be taken from a father or a husband’s point of view".[11][12]
In 2020, a retired Air Force officer was blocked from Bass's official Facebook page. When her office did not respond to his attempts to contact her to have the ban removed, the officer sued the Air Force. In 2022, the Justice Department determined that official Air Force websites and pages would not remove posts or ban users for their viewpoints, and the officer's access to Bass's Facebook page was restored.[13][14]
March 2001 – January 2004, Noncommissioned Officer in Charge, Special Airlift Operations, Air Mobility Operations Control Center, Ramstein Air Base, Germany
January 2004 – November 2005, Noncommissioned Officer in Charge, Host Aviation Resource Management, 86th Operational Support Squadron, Ramstein Air Base, Germany
November 2005 – August 2010, Superintendent, Host Aviation Resource Management, Group Career Field Functional Manager, (Data Masked)
August 2010 – September 2012, Superintendent, Host Aviation Resource Management and Superintendent, 86th Operations Support Squadron, Ramstein Air Base, Germany
September 2012 – May 2015, Superintendent, 86th Operations Group, Ramstein Air Base, Germany
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