Lieutenant Colonel Jason Lingk
Lieutenant Colonel Jason Lingk enlisted in the Wisconsin Army National Guard in February 1998 as an Infantryman. He began his active-duty service after graduating from the University of Wisconsin – Oshkosh with a B.S. in Political Science in 2003. After completing the Infantry Officer Basic Course, he was assigned to 1-14 Infantry Battalion, 1st Armor Division at Fort Riley, KS where he served as a Rifle Platoon Leader and Company Executive Officer.
Following his time at Fort Riley, Lieutenant Colonel Lingk attended the Maneuver Captains Career Course in 2007 and completed the Special Forces Qualification Course in 2009. As a Special Forces Officer, he was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) where he served as Detachment Commander of Operational Detachment – Alpha 5232. Lieutenant Colonel Lingk was reassigned to Strategic Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) in Mons, Belgium where he served as a Political Military Officer in SHAPE’s Military Partnerships Directorate for NATO special relationship countries (GEO, RUS, URK).
In 2014 Lieutenant Colonel Lingk attended the Command and General Staff Officer Course at Ft. Leavenworth, KS where he also earned a Master of Arts in Securities Studies from Kansas State University. The following year he was accepted into Functional Area 30, and began his career as an Information Operations Officer. In this capacity, he served as a Field Support Team Leader, Field Support Detachment Chief, and a Battalion Operations Officer while assigned to 1st IO Battalion, 1st IO Command at Fort Belvoir, VA. He was subsequently assigned to Special Operations Command – Europe in September of 2019 where he held positions including the Theater Special Operations Command’s Information Operations Branch Chief and J39. Lieutenant Colonel Lingk took command of 1st Information Operations Battalion on 18 May 2022. As of July 2024, he is serving as an Army War College Fellow at Tufts University.
Lieutenant Colonel Lingk has completed deployments in support of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM (2005 and 2010); and Operation FREEDOM’S SENTINEL (2016). Additionally, while assigned to 5th SFG he led four separate Joint Combined Exchange Training and Counter Narco-terrorism events in Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, and Saudi Arabia. His military schooling includes Airborne School, Jumpmaster School, Ranger School, the Special Forces Qualification Course, and the Joint Combined Warfighting School. His awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart, Defense Meritorious Service Medal (one OLC), Meritorious Service Medal (one OLC), Afghanistan Campaign Medal (one star), and Iraq Campaign Medal (four stars).
Lieutenant Colonel Lingk is married to the former Brittany Davidson of Overland Park, KS. They have three daughters: Rhylie, Averie, and Zoey.