LANSING, Mich. – “Over thousands of years of warfare, we’ve seen advances in the domains of land and sea; then, over the last century, in air and space,” said U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Terrill, director of Michigan National Guard’s (MING) Joint Staff. “But probably the most important domain where we face adversaries today is the cyber domain.”
Terrill addressed a room full of cyber-Soldiers, friends, family and civilian government and industry cyber partners who gathered to witness a change of command ceremony for Detachment 1, Cyber Protection Team 172 (CPT 172) at Joint Forces Headquarters in Lansing October 3, 2021.
CPT 172 conducts cyber operations to secure homeland and DoD infrastructure against cyber-attacks, as well as gain dominance in the cyber domain on the battlefield. They integrate operations regularly with interagency and civilian partners to stay at the forefront of the ongoing cyber battle.
Maj. Roman Kocherovsky took over command from Lt. Col. Robert Maciolek, who had spent almost eight years leading CPT 172.
Maciolek started his Army career as a single channel radio operator, then completed Airborne school and commissioned as a signal officer. A few years later, he became a pioneer in the domain of cyberspace for MING, serving as the first cyber operations officer for the state.
“I’ve had the distinct honor to serve with some of the best warriors in the entire force. They are brilliant,” said Maciolek. “We built the team from the ground-up and they’ve done some truly amazing things over the last eight years. I’ve been very blessed to be their leader.”
In his next assignment, Maciolek will continue his work with radios, satellites, networks and cyber. He leaves CPT 172 to serve as the joint air and army signal officer in charge for MING’s Joint Staff, working under Brig. Gen. Terrill.
“I know CPT 172 will be left in good hands,” Maciolek reassured his former unit as he concluded his farewell speech.
Incoming commander, Maj. Kocherovsky, spoke of his excitement to take over the reins of his new unit, indicating this assumption of command is an extension of trust by MING leadership.
“I’m honored to assume command,” said Kocherovsky. “This will be a new chapter in the story of our detachment.”
Kocherovsky recently transferred from the Texas National Guard and participated in MING’s annual exercise Northern Strike 2021, where he assisted in developing future exercise framework for Special Operations Forces-integrated all domain warfare.
The day prior to the change of command ceremony, CPT 172 participated in an incident response exercise designed to test the unit’s cyber capabilities. Training was conducted by one of MING’s civilian cyber partners, also in attendance at the ceremony.
“We are agile and evolving quickly,” Kocherovsky added. “Our Soldiers receive continuous cutting-edge training. Obviously, I am extremely passionate about our unit and our mission.”