Travis Air Force Base: The Hub of Global Airlift
In the dry valley between the Bay Area and Sacramento, Travis Air Force Base is the Gateway to the Pacific, the home of the 60th Air Mobility Wing, the largest air mobility organization in the Air Force by personnel, flying the C-5M Super Galaxy, the C-17 Globemaster III, and the KC-46 Pegasus, with the Reserve 349th Air Mobility Wing alongside it. It is the busiest military air terminal in the country and the home of the David Grant medical center, so the people here are aircrew, maintainers, medics, and mobility staff. Families settle in Fairfield, Suisun City, and Vacaville in hot, dry Solano County, with Sacramento and the East Bay each less than an hour away. A wing that keeps the global airlift moving will protect that mission and move hard against an Airman who steps wrong.
Military defense is all Bilecki Law Group does, and Airmen fly us in from our office in Tampa because a contested court martial is decided by trial experience, and we bring it wherever the case is.
The Pilot Who Ditched to Save His Observer
The standard for a mobility crew was set by Captain Steven L. Bennett, a forward air controller over Quảng Trị on June 29, 1972. After a missile crippled his aircraft, Bennett learned that his observer's parachute had been shredded and could not be used, so rather than eject and save himself, which would have killed the observer, he ditched the burning plane into the Gulf of Tonkin. The observer lived; Bennett did not. He gave his own life so the man beside him could go home. That is the standard we bring to a case at Travis.
Why Airmen at Travis Bring Us In
We win court martial cases. Military defense is all we do, and Airmen fly us in from all over the country because of our trial record. The military justice system is not built to find the truth; it exists to preserve good order and discipline, and the largest air mobility organization in the Air Force by personnel will make an example of an Airman to keep its mission moving. For a rated pilot there is a second front, because a Flying Evaluation Board can pull you off flying status on a standard far below a conviction, so the criminal case and the aviation career are two fights at once. A serious case is investigated by the Office of Special Investigations, and for sexual assault and other covered offenses the decision to refer charges to a court martial no longer belongs to your command but goes to an independent Special Trial Counsel. The Area Defense Counsel may be capable but carries a heavy caseload inside the same system, which is why Airmen serious about winning bring in their own counsel.
UCMJ Charges We Defend at Travis Air Force Base
The charges below are the ones we see most often at Travis, not the only ones we defend. If you are facing a different UCMJ allegation, we handle that too.
Sexual Assault and Sex Offenses (UCMJ Article 120 / Article 134). These allegations route to an independent Special Trial Counsel now, and the command treats a report as established before the investigation is finished, all the more so in a tight squadron where word of an allegation travels fast. These cases demand counsel who will run an independent investigation and contest the case rather than let the allegation stand in for proof, because a conviction can mean confinement and a federal record, with registration required for a covered sex offense under the applicable federal and state law.
Domestic Violence and Assault (UCMJ Articles 128b and 128). Domestic violence under Article 128b is charged as aggressively as any offense in the UCMJ since the Office of Special Trial Counsel took these cases over. It covers a spouse, an intimate partner, or a family member, and it treats strangulation or suffocation as its own charge that the government can bring even with no visible injury. A qualifying conviction also triggers the federal Lautenberg firearms bar, which can end an Air Force career because an Airman has to be able to carry a weapon. We also defend assault under Article 128, the usual charge when a night out in Fairfield ends in a fight, where self defense is a recognized defense.
Larceny and Government Property (UCMJ Articles 121 and 108). A mobility wing full of aircraft, cargo, and support equipment is issued and signs for a great deal of controlled material, and accountability is taken seriously. The government treats missing gear, an item that cannot be reconciled, or property that walked off as larceny under Article 121 or wrongful disposition of military property under Article 108, but a shortage on an inventory is not the same as theft, and the government still has to prove the state of mind required by the charged offense: intent for larceny or fraud, or negligence where Article 108 permits it, not just that something cannot be found.
Drugs and Off Duty Conduct (UCMJ Articles 112a and 134). Drug cases often turn on the chain of custody and the government's burden to prove any use was knowing and wrongful. Marijuana is one to keep in mind: it is legal in California, but it is still a federal controlled substance and a court martial offense under Article 112a, and being legal off base does not make it lawful for an Airman, and for aircrew a drug allegation can trigger a suspension of flying duties and a separate review of flight status on top of the criminal case. A positive test is evidence the government may use to argue knowing, wrongful use, not an automatic finding of guilt, so the collection, the chain of custody, and whether any use was knowing all remain the government's to prove.
A Career and a Reputation Worth Defending
We do not pretend that every Airman who calls us from Travis is innocent. What matters is how serious the case is, not your rank. If a matter is genuinely minor, the Area Defense Counsel can handle it, and we will tell you so honestly. But when the case is serious, everything is on the line at once: your career, your wings, your retirement, your good name, and your freedom. A court martial conviction is a federal criminal conviction, and the applicable sentencing parameters tie a confinement range to the offense, two and a half to ten years for sexual assault and ten to twenty for rape, that a judge can depart from only by stating specific facts in writing, on top of any required or adjudged punitive discharge and, on a covered sex offense, sex offender registration. That is why you fight. The court’s jurisdiction and the convicted offense determine which sentencing rules apply; some offenses use separate sentencing criteria rather than these ranges.
If you are facing an investigation or court martial at Travis Air Force Base, reach out for a free, confidential strategy session. We will tell you exactly what you are facing and how we would defend it. The government is already building its case. The only question is whether anyone is building yours.
Cases Connected to Travis Air Force Base
These cases include trials, hearings, investigations, and administrative matters. A connection to this location does not necessarily mean that the trial occurred here.
- Case connected to this location: Vengeful Complainant Cries Sex Harassment for Accidental Contact, Charge Dropped
- Case connected to this location: Case Result: Air Force Officer Defense
- Case connected to this location: Bilecki Holds Custody-Driven Article 120 and Decade-Long Article 128 Domestic Violence Allegations to No Court Martial Referral at Travis AFB; 8 of 8 Central Registry Board Findings "Did Not Meet Criteria," Article 15 Limited to Article 112a THC Vape and Article 131b Obstruction Only
FAQ
OSI wants to interview me at Travis. Do I have to talk to them?
No. Under Article 31b of the UCMJ you have the right to remain silent and to a lawyer, and you can invoke both before the interview begins. OSI is gathering evidence, not offering a chance to explain, and a statement can drive both the criminal case and an action against your flying status or your clearance. Decline, ask for the Area Defense Counsel or your own lawyer, and say nothing until you have one.
My DUI happened off base in Solano County. Can Travis still court martial me?
Yes. California and the military are separate sovereigns, so the same incident can move forward in Solano County and as a command or court martial action at the same time, and a civilian dismissal does not end the UCMJ exposure. A statement to one system can be used by the other, so do not talk to the police or OSI until you have a defense lawyer, and remember that for a rated Airman a DUI can also threaten flying status.
I'm rated aircrew. If I beat the charge, can I still lose my wings?
Yes, because a Flying Evaluation Board is a separate proceeding on a lower standard than a conviction. You can win the court martial and still lose flying status if the board side is not fought, which is why the underlying allegation has to be defended on both fronts from the start. We handle the criminal case and the aviation board together.