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SANDS

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SANDS

The SANDS Concentration is a USAF boarded concentration that produces nuclear deterrence experts who go on to command, plan, and advise in the US Nuclear Enterprise. Deterrence specific course instruction is reinforced with several experiential learning trips to COCOMS, MAJCOMS, Nuclear Labs, NATO HQ, and operational units. The significance of this mission was underscored in General Davis’s April 2026 testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, in which he identified SANDS as Air Force Global Strike Command’s flagship Professional Military Education effort and highlighted its role in developing premier deterrence experts to advise senior leaders across the Department of War.

Dr. Melvin G. Deaile is the Director of the School of Advanced Nuclear and Deterrence Studies (SANDS) and an Associate Professor in the Department of Security Studies at Air University’s Air Command and Staff College. Dr. Deaile is a Fresno, CA native and a retired Air Force Colonel, having served two tours in the B-52 Stratofortress and a tour in the B-2 Spirit. He has flown combat operations as part of Operations DESERT STORM and OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM, including a record-setting 44.3-hour combat mission, and deployed in support of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM. He is the recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross and a distinguished graduate of the USAF Weapons School. He holds a PhD from the University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill and Master's degrees from Louisiana Tech, CGSC, SAASS, and the University of Alabama. Dr. Deaile published his first book, Always at War, which chronicles the development of SAC’s organizational culture under Gen Curtis LeMay, and recently authored his second book, Cold War Alabama. He has written numerous articles, editorials, and book reviews on nuclear weapons and their role in national security.
Lt. Col. Alex Sibal is Deputy Director of the School for Advanced Nuclear Deterrence Studies at the Air Command and Staff College, Air University. He supports syllabus development and execution which provides deterrence subject matter experts for the Department of Defense. He also instructs U.S. and international field grade officers, and interagency civilians to develop, employ, and command air, space, and cyberspace forces across the continuum of conflict.  Lt. Col. Sibal was commissioned in May 2007 through the U.S. Air Force Academy. He transitioned to the B-52 in 2013 and held a variety of positions in both Bomb Squadrons of the 2d Bomb Wing at Barksdale AFB, La. While at Barksdale, he also attended U.S. Air Force Weapons School and instructed Weapons School with the 57th Wing’s 340th Weapons Squadron before moving in 2019 to Osan Air Base, Republic of Korea, for duty at the 607th Air Operations Center and later the 607th Air Support Operations Group. Prior to his current position, Lt. Col. Sibal was the Commander, 3d Air Support Operations Squadron, Fort Wainwright, Alaska.
Dr. Kathryn Boehlefeld is an Associate Professor of Military and Security Studies at Air University's Air Command and Staff College, and a faculty member for the School of Advanced Nuclear Deterrence Studies (SANDS). She earned her PhD in Political Science from the University of Notre Dame and her B.A. from Northern Illinois University. She is also a graduate of the Joint and Combined Warfighting School. Dr. Boehlefeld teaches courses on contemporary nuclear deterrence, international security, and comparative political-military affairs. Her research centers on international security, with a particular focus on national security policy, civil-military relations, economic sanctions, and nuclear deterrence. Currently, she is working on projects related to interoperability, integration, and interdependence, nuclear arms control, and a book-length comparative study of the efficacy of the Iranian and North Korea nuclear sanctions.
Dr. Todd C. Robinson is Associate Professor of Military and Security Studies at the School for Advanced Nuclear Deterrence Studies (SANDS), Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell Air Force Base. He specializes in nuclear strategy, global governance, and international institutions. His research has been published in Comparative Strategy, The Nonproliferation Review, Yale Journal of International Affairs, and The National Interest, and is forthcoming at Prism and the Air and Space Power Journal. His most recent publication is Nuclear Responsibility: Defining Responsible Nuclear Statecraft in an Era of Great Power Competition (Bloomsbury 2026). He previously served as a Stanton Nuclear Security Fellow at the RAND Corporation and as Associate Director of the Program in Arms Control, Disarmament, and International Security (ACDIS) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he earned his Ph.D. in Political Science.
Major George W. Statzell, "V" is a 2026 graduate of the School of Advanced Nuclear Deterrence Studies (SANDS) and currently serves as the follow-on SANDS instructor for academic year 2027. Prior to attending ACSC/SANDS, he served as the Chief of Strike Training for USNORTHCOM’s Special Activities Branch at Cheyenne Mountain SFS, directing training for Presidential Strike Advisors, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Conference Managers, and National Assessor Authority personnel. His previous assignments include a range of operational, instructor, evaluator, and leadership roles as an ICBM officer at Malmstrom AFB, as well as serving as a Mission Commander and staff officer at the Air Force Technical Applications Center, including deployment aboard USNS Invincible in support of CJCS‑directed operations. Major Statzell commissioned through ROTC at the Virginia Military Institute and holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Master of Military Operational Art and Science.