The commander of the Vermont Air National Guard was forced to resign after he flew to Washington, D.C., in an F-16 jet to combine a work conference with a visit to a female Army colonel with whom he was romantically linked.
Col. Thomas “TJ” Jackman – whose aviator callsign was “Snatch” – traded affectionate emails in December 2014 and January 2015 with a female Army colonel who worked at the Pentagon, according to the VTDigger.
The woman sent photos of herself to Jackman, whose 32-year military career included two tours each to Iraq and Afghanistan. That prompted Jackman, 55, who was married, to say, “you look beautiful” and “(I) can’t help but notice every part of you.” In a separate exchange, she told Jackman, “Fun seeing your name pop up in the inbox. Always makes me smile. (and tingle…).”
Eventually, the pair tried to coordinate a way for them to meet, and had an opportunity to do so in January 2015 when Jackman was slated to join a conference at Andrews Air Force Base near Washington. Email correspondence between Jackman and the unidentified Army colonel shows she talked about meeting Jackman on Jan. 27 and on Jan. 29.
“Get the 27th here soon,” she wrote in one email weeks ahead of time. “I am going to the mall today to check dresses.”) Jackman stayed at Andrews Air Force Base the night after the conference like other conference attendees. But the VT Digger also reports Jackman had booked a room at the Morrison House in Alexandria, Va., on Jan. 27, and a room at the JW Marriott in Washington, D.C., for Jan. 29.
After providing information about the trip to his superior, Jackman was instructed to take a commercial flight back. It’s unclear whether the government paid for all personal expenses accrued during his trip to Washington.
Jackman denied a romance with the Army colonel, who did not respond to a request for comment from the VTDigger. He responded “no comment” when pressed by the VTDigger on whether his retirement was related to his travels to Washington. He is now USPS postmaster at Essex Junction, Vermont, where he lives with his wife Linda.
Vermont Air National Guard officials declined to be interviewed and didn’t respond to questions about Jackman’s ouster, but the Guard’s press representative did acknowledge it was uncommon for pilots to use fighter jets to travel to work conferences. “When it has occurred, pilots conduct training and complete annual requirements to and from the conference location,” 1st Lt. Mikel Arcovitch said.
Jackman was pressed to step down following the trip, and was given advance notice about the move so he could file resignation papers and keep his retirement benefits. Former Vermont Air National Guard members familiar with the situation say he retired with full active duty benefits and was allowed to keep his top secret security clearance.
Vermont’s adjutant general, Maj. Gen. Steven Cray, did not provide details on why Jackman was being replaced when announcing Jackman’s departure, but in a separate memo to rank and file members said he had lost confidence in Jackman’s leadership.
