Ronald Fogleman

Ronald R. Fogleman
Nickname(s) Ron
Born (1942-01-27) January 27, 1942
Allegiance United States of America
Service/branch United States Air Force
Years of service 1963–1997
Rank General
Commands held Chief of Staff of the Air Force
U.S. Transportation Command
Air Mobility Command

Ronald Robert Fogleman (born January 27, 1942) is a retired General in the United States Air Force who served as the 15th Chief of Staff of the Air Force from 1994 to 1997, and before that, from 1992 to 1994 as Commander-in-Chief of the United States Transportation Command.

Biography

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 Phu Cat Air Base between 25 December 1968 and 23 April 1969.[1]

Fogleman was shot down in Vietnam in 1968, while piloting a 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 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."

General Fogleman retired on September 1, 1997.

Bosnian War Controversy in June 1995

During the Bosnian War NATO Forces were establishing a no-fly-zone. On the second June two patrolling US F16 aircraft of that operation came under attack by a Serbian SA-6 surface-to-air missile. One plane was consequently hit and the pilot, Scott O'Grady ejected. Minutes after the landing, Serbian forces were closing in on his position, but he managed to escape and radioed for help on the 4th day, transmitting intermittent to lessen the chance of detection. These radio calls were picked up by US Forces.

General Ronald Fogleman, at the time Air Force Chief of Staff told press reporters during a promotion ceremony that "intermittent" transmissions were picked up. An "enraged" NATO official described this with "I was dumbfounded he said that" and "I mean, why not just announce to the bad guys, 'We think he's alive and kicking, and we hope we find him before you do'?" according to information published in the TIME magazine.[3]

However this 'leak' did not thwart a US Marine rescue operation involving several aircraft and helicopters that was launched later. Although the rescue forces came under small arms fire and missiles were fired by shoulder-held surface-to-air launchers on the way back, O'Grady was successfully extracted.[4]

Post-Air Force career

He 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][5][6]

On November 11, 2009, General 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.[7]

Awards and decorations

Air Force Command Pilot Badge
Basic Parachutist Badge
Basic Missile Maintenance Badge
Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge

Defense Distinguished Service Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters

Air Force Distinguished Service Medal with one bronze oak leaf cluster
Army Distinguished Service Medal
Navy Distinguished Service Medal
Silver Star

Width-44 crimson ribbon with a pair of width-2 white stripes on the edges

Legion of Merit with one bronze oak leaf cluster

Distinguished Flying Cross with one bronze oak leaf cluster
Purple Heart
Meritorious Service Medal

Air Medal with three silver and one bronze oak leaf clusters
Air Medal (second ribbon to denote eighteenth award)
Aerial Achievement Medal

Air Force Commendation Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters

Air Force Presidential Unit Citation with one bronze oak leaf cluster
Joint Meritorious Unit Award
V

Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with "V" device and three bronze oak leaf clusters
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award (second ribbon to denote fifth award)

Air Force Organizational Excellence Award with one bronze oak leaf cluster
Combat Readiness Medal
Air Force Recognition Ribbon
Bronze star

Width=44 scarlet ribbon with a central width-4 golden yellow stripe, flanked by pairs of width-1 scarlet, white, Old Glory blue, and white stripes

National Defense Service Medal with one bronze service star
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star

Vietnam Service Medal with three bronze service stars

Air Force Overseas Short Tour Service Ribbon with one bronze oak leaf cluster

Air Force Overseas Long Tour Service Ribbon with two bronze oak leaf clusters

Air Force Longevity Service Award with one silver and two bronze oak leaf clusters
Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon
Air Force Training Ribbon
Order of National Security Merit, Gugseon Medal, Republic of Korea
Knight Grand Cross (First Class) of the Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand
Grand Cordon, First Class, Order of the Rising Sun, Japan
Royal Order of the Polar Star, Commander First Class, Sweden
Legion of Honor, with the rank of Commander, France[8]
Venezuelan Air Force Cross, First Class
SICOFAA Legion of Merit Medal, Grand Cross, System of Cooperation Among the American Air Forces
Korean Presidential Unit Citation
Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation
Vietnam Campaign Medal

References

  1. 1 2 "Where Now? Misty Bio: Ron Fogleman" (PDF). Misty Vietnam. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  2. http://defensetech.org/#ixzz1jcfMz4nw Defense.org
  3. http://www.webcitation.org/5zHdPrWZu Time Magazine
  4. http://www.webcitation.org/5zHdPrWZu Time Magazine
  5. "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.
  6. 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.
  7. "Air Force Link "General Ronald R. Fogleman"". Archived from the original on 2012-07-17.
Military offices
Preceded by
Gen. Merrill McPeak
Chief of Staff of the Air Force
19941997
Succeeded by
Gen. Michael E. Ryan
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