Ronald Fogleman
Ronald Robert Fogleman (born January 27, 1942) is a retired United States Air Force general who served as the 15th Chief of Staff of the Air Force from 1994 to 1997 and, before that, as Commanding General, United States Transportation Command from 1992 to 1994.
Ronald R. Fogleman | |
|---|---|
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| Nickname(s) | Ron |
| Born | January 27, 1942 |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Service/ | United States Air Force |
| Years of service | 1963–1997 |
| Rank | General |
| Commands held | Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force United States Transportation Command Air Mobility Command |
| Battles/wars | Vietnam War |
| Awards | Defense Distinguished Service Medal (3) Air Force Distinguished Service Medal (2) Army Distinguished Service Medal Navy Distinguished Service Medal Silver Star Legion of Merit (2) Distinguished Flying Cross (2) Purple Heart |
Air Force career
A 1963 graduate from the United States Air Force Academy, he holds a master's degree in military history and political science from Duke University. A command pilot and a parachutist, he amassed more than 6,800 flying hours in fighter, transport, tanker and rotary wing aircraft. He flew 315 combat missions and logged 806 hours of combat flying in fighter aircraft. 80 of his missions were as a "Misty FAC" in the F-100F Super Sabre at Phù Cát Air Base between 25 December 1968 and 23 April 1969.[1]
Fogleman was shot down in Vietnam in 1968, while piloting an F-100. He was rescued by clinging to an AH-1 Cobra helicopter that landed at the crash site.[2]
In early assignments he instructed student pilots, performed combat duty as a fighter pilot and high-speed forward air controller in Vietnam and Thailand, taught history at the Air Force Academy and conducted flight operations in Europe—including duty as an F-15 Eagle aircraft demonstration pilot for international airshows. He commanded an Air Force wing, an air division, a numbered air force, a major command and a unified combatant command.
Fogleman was the first graduate of the United States Air Force Academy to advance to Chief of Staff of the Air Force. During his tenure, he introduced a simplified code of conduct for airmen, which remains in use today. Called the "Air Force Core Values", the code demands "Integrity First, Service Before Self, and Excellence in All We Do."
In 1996 Fogleman created the Chief of Staff of the US Air Force (CSAF) Professional Reading Program in order to "to develop a common frame of reference among Air Force members -- officers, enlisted, and civilians -- to help each of us become better, more effective advocates of air and space power.[3]" The list has been enhanced by subsequent CSAF's and includes books by Rolf Dobelli, Simon Sinek, and Victor Davis Hansen.
Fogleman retired on September 1, 1997.
Accolades for air combat and recon during the Bosnian War
During the Bosnian War, Fogleman as USAF Chief of Staff, was intimately familiar with air reconnaissance and combat rescue missions, trading on his experience early in his career when he flew as an F-100 Misty FastFac serving as the on scene commander for combat rescue efforts in Vietnam [4] and later in life when he flew F-4s and F-15s in Europe during the Cold War.[5] Fogleman's understanding of how to factor real-time intelligence and electronic signals from unmanned Gnat 750 and Predator surveillance aircraft, over hostile areas[6] proved critical when U.S. Air Force pilot Scott O'Grady's F-16 was shot down over Bosnia and Herzegovina on 2 June 1995. O'Grady evaded capture and on 6 June, he transmitted intermittent radio messages to lessen the chance of detection by enemy forces. O'Grady was rescued by US Marines on 8 June.[7]
Post-Air Force career
Fogleman currently has a seat on the Boards of Directors of Alliant Techsystems, AAR Corporation, Mesa Air Group, Inc., Tactical Air Support, Inc., World Air Holdings, Inc., and the Tauriga Sciences Inc.'s Business Advisory Board[1][8][9] He is also on the board of advisors of the Code of Support Foundation, a nonprofit military services organization.[10]
On November 11, 2009, Fogleman was appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors at Alliant Techsystems Inc., following the retirement of ATK Chairman and CEO Dan Murphy.
As a Boeing consultant, Fogleman said that the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II will not be a combat proven aircraft until it receives the Block 3F software in the early 2020s.[11]
Awards and decorations
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Air Force Command Pilot Badge |
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Basic Parachutist Badge |
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Basic Missile Maintenance Badge |
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Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge |
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In 2013 he was inducted into the Airlift/Tanker Hall of Fame.[12]
References
- "Where Now? Misty Bio: Ron Fogleman" (PDF). Misty Vietnam. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
- http://defensetech.org/#ixzz1jcfMz4nw Defense.org
- "Chief of Staff of the Air Force Professional Reading List". United States Air Force. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
- http://mistyvietnam.com/the-men/timelines-of-mistys-in-vietnam
- http://www.af.mil/About-Us/Biographies/Display/Article/104988/general-ronald-r-fogleman
- http://dronecenter.bard.edu/drones-in-bosnia
- https://www.webcitation.org/5zHdPrWZu?url=http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,983055,00.html Time Magazine
- "Tauriga Sciences Inc. Appoints General Ronald R. Fogleman, USAF, Retired, as a Member of the Company's Business Advisory Board". Globe Newswire. 2014-04-15. Retrieved 12 November 2014.
- "Code of Support Foundation advisory board". codeofsupportfoundation.org. 4 June 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
- Hemmerdinger, Jon (4 November 2013). "South Korea needs both F-15s and F-35s: retired USAF general". flightglobal.com. Reed Elsevier. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
- "Airlift/Tanker Association Hall of Fame". Airlift/Tanker Association.
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Merrill McPeak |
Chief of Staff of the Air Force 1994–1997 |
Succeeded by Michael E. Ryan |
