Merrill Anthony McPeak (born January 9, 1936) is a retired 4-star general in the United States Air Force whose final assignment before retirement was as the 14th chief of staff of the Air Force from 1990 to 1994.
In 1993, McPeak served as Acting Secretary of the Air Force, before Sheila E. Widnall was appointed by President Bill Clinton, and is the only Chief of Staff of the Air Force and uniformed Air Force officer on active duty to have ever served as Acting Secretary.
Early life and education
McPeak was born in Santa Rosa, California. After graduating from Grants Pass High School in Grants Pass, Oregon, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from San Diego State College in 1957 and became a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity. He was commissioned through Air Force ROTC, and entered active duty in November of that year. He later earned a Master of Arts degree in international relations from George Washington University in 1974.
Career
After completing preflight and pilot training, McPeak flew single-seat fighter aircraft, the F-100 Super Sabre and the F-104 Starfighter, in operational squadrons in the United States and the United Kingdom. He later returned to the United States as an instructor pilot and weapons officer at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona.
In July 1976, he became commander of the 513th Combat Support Group based at RAF Mildenhall in the United Kingdom; a year later he moved to Zaragoza Air Base, Spain as vice commander of the 406th Tactical Fighter Training Wing. From 1978 to 1980, he was assistant chief of staff for current operations, Allied Air Forces Central Europe (in Boerfink, West Germany). 1980 and 1981 saw him flying the twin-seat F-111E fighter bomber and commanding the 20th Tactical Fighter Wing based at RAF Upper Heyford, United Kingdom. McPeak was chief of staff at USAFE headquarters from 1981 to 1982, and deputy chief of staff for plans at Tactical Air Command (TAC) headquarters, Langley AFB, Virginia from 1982 to 1985. He returned to Headquarters USAF in 1985–87 as deputy chief of staff for programs and resources.
In June 1987, McPeak moved to Bergstrom AFB, Texas in the dual roles of Commander, 12th Air Force and Commander of Air Forces for United States Southern Command. A year later, he was named commander-in-chief of Pacific Air Forces (PACAF).
Air Force Chief of Staff
left|thumb|222x222px|General Merrill McPeak piloted a [[Boeing C-17 Globemaster III during his tenure as Air Force Chief of Staff.|alt=]]
left|thumb|222x222px|Lieutenant General Merrill McPeak during his tenure as commander of The [[Twelfth Air Force|12th Air Force. ]]
thumb|left|McPeak in 1993, wearing the redesigned Air Force Service Dress Uniform that was used from 1993 to 1994.|alt=|231x231px
thumb|222x222px|General Merrill McPeak and [[Air Mobility Command|Air Mobility Command (AMC) Commander General Ronald Fogleman during the delivery of U.S. Air Force first Boeing C-17 Globemaster III (The Spirit of Charleston), at Charleston Air Force Base, South Carolina, June 14, 1993.]]
thumb|222x222px|Air Force Chief of Staff General Merrill McPeak flying a U.S. Air Force [[Learjet 35|Learjet C-21A, during a visit to Saudi Arabia on May 5, 1992. ]]
thumb|222x222px|Air Force Chief of Staff General Merrill McPeak inspecting [[United States Air Force|U.S. Air Force personnel deployed in the Middle East during Operation Desert Storm on May 5, 1991. ]]
McPeak was appointed Air Force Chief of Staff by President George H. W. Bush in October 1990, replacing the retiring General Michael Dugan following the latter's removal from the CSAF post by SECDEF Dick Cheney for ill-timed and inappropriate comments to the news media regarding Iraq during Operation Desert Shield.
McPeak took over as chief of staff during Operation Desert Shield, and assisted in overall strategic planning for Operation Desert Storm.
McPeak's later tenure as chief of staff following the Gulf War also saw a major reduction in force in terms of aircraft, units, officers and enlisted airmen across the entire Air Force as a result of the end of the Cold War. During his time as chief of staff, he oversaw the disestablishment of Strategic Air Command (SAC), Tactical Air Command (TAC), Military Airlift Command (MAC), Air Force Systems Command (AFSC), Air Force Logistics Command (AFLC), and Air Force Communications Command (AFCC), with assets transferred primarily to the newly established Air Combat Command (ACC), Air Mobility Command (AMC), Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) and the then-Air Force Communications Agency. His tenure also oversaw the merging of Air Training Command (ATC) and Air University (AU) into the Air Education and Training Command (AETC).
McPeak pushed through major organizational changes in the Air Force aimed at streamlining and emphasizing operations and combat readiness. Much of his tenure focused on elevating the status of flight operations, especially single-seat fighter pilots, some say at the expense of multi-seat fighter, bomber and reconnaissance aircraft and personnel, cargo and air refueling aircraft and personnel, and non-flying career fields. He also created the Air Force Expeditionary Wing concept, a fusion of combat forces and support into a single organization. He also transferred several flying wing and space wing command billets to brigadier generals, even though previously these had been commanded by colonels.
However, McPeak is best remembered by many current and since-retired Air Force personnel for the sweeping changes he made to the Air Force's service dress uniform, especially for commissioned officers. Worn by personnel during most garrison duties, the new version was a radical departure from the earlier version, which was essentially the same design as the then-U.S. Army service uniform (the U.S. Air Force was originally the U.S. Army Air Corps and then the U.S. Army Air Forces), but with fewer insignia and in blue. In addition to a new three-button design with fewer and non-buttoning pockets, it changed the rank insignia for officers to use naval-style sleeve stripes, as opposed to metal pins on shoulder straps. Because of the new uniform's resemblance to both commissioned officer's uniforms of the U.S. Navy and those of commercial airline pilots, the McPeak uniform was said to be unpopular with Air Force service members.
left|thumb|260x260px|Air Force Chief of Staff General Merrill McPeak observes operations in the cockpit of [[Lockheed C-130 Hercules|Lockheed-Martin C-130 Hercules.]]
McPeak also acted as Secretary of the Air Force for three weeks in 1993, before the formal appointment and confirmation of Sheila E. Widnall, becoming the only person to have ever concurrently served in both capacities. McPeak continued as Chief of Staff through October 1994, retiring afterwards.
McPeak's legacy as Chief of Staff has been considered in several quarters as one of the most controversial in Air Force history and has been the subject of much debate. Many Air Force senior officers and senior enlisted personnel, both active and retired from the Regular Air Force, the Air Force Reserve and the Air National Guard, have accused him of trying to run the Air Force as a corporation, with his introduction of Total Quality Management (TQM) under the moniker of "Quality Air Force" (QAF).
Rightly or wrongly, McPeak was also often accused of ignoring the needs of enlisted personnel, non-flying officers, aeronautically-rated navigator officers, and looking out solely for his officers who were pilots, primarily single-seat fighter pilots. There was even debate over the somewhat traditional act of inducting him as the outgoing Chief of Staff into the Order of the Sword.
Some of this controversy may also be traced, at least in part, to the abrupt manner in which McPeak had replaced General Michael Dugan as Chief of Staff of the Air Force. General Dugan, a popular and well-intentioned officer, had sought to repair the Air Force's image, badly frayed by the service's withholding of embarrassing information about the performance of the F-117 Nighthawk during the invasion of Panama. Dugan had also sought to make top Air Force officials more accessible, but he was relieved of command by then-Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney shortly before the start of Operation Desert Storm and the first Gulf War following some intemperate remarks Dugan had made to the news media about targeting Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein under United Nations Security Council Resolution 666 prior to the start of hostilities, this despite the fact that as Air Force Chief of Staff, Dugan had no command authority within the U.S. Central Command theater of operations. In short order, Cheney quickly replaced Dugan with McPeak as Chief of Staff, although Dugan was retained as a 4-star special advisor by the Secretary of Defense until his retirement from the Air Force.
McPeak was appointed in July 2010 to the American Battle Monuments Commission. He was the tenth Chairman (and the first airman) to lead the commission. In 2018, the government of France decorated McPeak (Legion of Honor, Officer class) in connection with his prior service as U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff and in recognition of his Chairmanship of the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC). His leadership was essential in the restoration of the Lafayette Escadrille Memorial, outside Paris. The monument had fallen into disrepair, but has now been renovated and has become an ABMC property, ensuring its future maintenance. McPeak was a technical advisor to Ken Burns and Lynn Novick in their award-winning documentary, “The Vietnam War”. He appeared on-screen in 4 of the 10 episodes.
In 1992, San Diego State University gave its first ever Lifetime Achievement Award to General McPeak. In 1995, George Washington University honored him with its Distinguished Alumni Award, the "George." In 2005, on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the founding of Sigma Chi Fraternity, he was selected as one of 150 members of its Hall of Fame. He was among the initial seven inductees to the Oregon Aviation Hall of Honor.
In May 2012, McPeak published Hangar Flying, the first volume of The Aerial View Trilogy, three memoirs that document his career in the Air Force. The book was followed by Volume 2, Below the Zone, in November 2013, and Volume 3, Roles and Missions, in January 2017.
Israel
McPeak was harshly criticized by American Spectator journalist Robert Goldberg for comments and writings he has made regarding Israel.
Goldberg begins the piece saying that "McPeak has a long history of criticizing Israel for not going back to the 1967 borders as part of any peace agreement with Arab states. In 1976 McPeak wrote an article for Foreign Affairs magazine questioning Israel's insistence on holding on to the Golan Heights and parts of the West Bank."
Political activities
In 1996, McPeak served as Oregon state chairman for the Bob Dole for president campaign. During the presidential election of 2000 McPeak endorsed George W. Bush and served as co-chairman of Oregon Veterans for Bush. As the military and foreign policy of the Bush administration coalesced, however, McPeak expressed strong objections, especially with regard to the 2003 invasion of Iraq. McPeak later openly campaigned for Howard Dean's nomination, and when Dean withdrew, acted as an adviser for the John Kerry campaign. He was also one of twenty-seven signatories to the statement of the "Committee of Diplomats & Commanders for Change" calling the Bush administration a failure at "preserving national security" and calling for Bush not to be re-elected.
McPeak was a co-chair of Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign. He generated controversy following comments he made at a campaign appearance in Medford, Oregon, where he implied that former president Bill Clinton had appeared to question Obama's patriotism: "As one who for 37 years proudly wore the uniform of our country, I'm saddened to see a president employ these tactics. He of all people should know better because he was the target of exactly the same kind of tactics." McPeak also compared the former President's comments to McCarthyism: "I grew up, I was going to college when Joe McCarthy was accusing good Americans of being traitors, so I've had enough of it."
Dates of rank
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Dates of Rank
! Insignia !! Rank !! Date
|-
|70px||Gen||Aug. 1, 1988
|-
|54px||Lt Gen||May 22, 1985
|-
|36px||Maj Gen||Oct. 1, 1983
|-
|20px||Brig Gen||July 1, 1981
|-
|25px||Col||April 1, 1974
|-
|20px||Lt Col||Nov. 1, 1972
|-
|20px||Maj||May 20, 1968
|-
|15px||Capt||Oct. 1, 1962
|-
|6px||1st Lt||May 30, 1959
|-
|6px||2nd Lt||June 19, 1957
|}
Awards and decorations
McPeak's military decorations include the:
{|
|95px Command Pilot Badge
|-
|80px Basic Parachutist Badge
|-
|95px Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge
|-
| Defense Distinguished Service Medal
|-
| Air Force Distinguished Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
|-
| Silver Star
|-
| Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster
|-
| Distinguished Flying Cross with oak leaf cluster
|-
| Meritorious Service Medal
|-
| Air Medal (13 olc)
|-
| Air Force Commendation Medal (3 olc)
|-
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award
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|Air Force Organizational Excellence Award
|-
| Combat Readiness Medal
|-
| National Defense Service Medal with star
|-
| Vietnam Service Medal with 4 service stars
|-
| Air Force Overseas Service Ribbon Short Tour
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| Air Force Overseas Service Ribbon Long Tour with 2 oak leaves
|-
| Air Force Longevity Service Award (1 silver olc and 3 bronze olc)
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| Air Force Expert Marksmanship Ribbon
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| Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross
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| Vietnam Campaign Medal
|}
Qualification badges include the Command Pilot Badge, the Parachutist Badge, and the Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge.
References
External links
- Official USAF Biography
- Official website of General McPeak's Aerial View Trilogy
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