Michael Edward Ryan Ryan entered the U.S. Air Force after graduating from the United States Air Force Academy in 1965; he was a graduate of Omaha Creighton Prep High School. Ryan's father, General John Dale Ryan, was the 7th Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force, from 1969 to 1973.
As Commander of Sixteenth Air Force at Aviano Air Base and Allied Air Forces Southern Europe in Naples, from 1994 to 1996, Lieutenant General Ryan directed the NATO air combat operations in Bosnia-Herzegovina, including the bombing missions of Operation Deliberate Force, which created the context for the U.S. to broker the Dayton Peace Accords between the parties in conflict. Ryan personally approved every NATO target during the two-week Operation Deliberate Force campaign. During his tenure, USAF captain Scott O'Grady was shot down in an F-16 Fighting Falcon in early June 1995 over Bosnia by a surface-to-air missile launched by the Army of Republika Srpska. O'Grady was rescued a week later.
Before assuming the Chief of Staff position, General Ryan was from April 1996 to October 1997 dual-hatted as Commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Commander of Allied Air Forces Central Europe, with headquarters at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. President Bill Clinton announced the nomination of General Ryan as Chief of Staff of the Air Force on July 31, 1997.
During Operation Allied Force in April 1999, General Ryan made taskings to improve the capability of the Predator drone to collect time-sensitive intelligence for targeting, the results of which would later prove useful in Operation Enduring Freedom. General Ryan formally retired from the U.S. Air Force on October 1, 2001: although the first day on the job of his successor, General John P. Jumper, was on September 11, 2001.
Awards and decorations
thumb|Air Force Chief of Staff General Michael E. Ryan with [[United States Secretary of the Air Force|Secretary of the Air Force F. Whitten Peters at The Pentagon in 2001.|alt=|247x247px]]
thumb|right|300px|General Michael E. Ryan with Brigadier General Robert Latiff (commander of Cheyenne Mountain Operations Center) and General [[Richard B. Myers (CINCNORAD/USCINCSPACE/COMAFSPC) standing outside the North portal at Cheyenne Mountain Complex on September 1, 1999.]]
{| class="wikitable"
|- style="background:#ccf; text-align:center;"
| colspan="2" |Other accoutrements
|-
| align="center" |130px
|Command Air Force Pilot Badge
|-
| align="center" |90px
|Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|- style="background:#ccf; text-align:center;"
| colspan="2" |Personal decorations
|-
|
|Defense Distinguished Service Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters
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|Air Force Distinguished Service Medal with bronze oak leaf cluster
|-
|
|Army Distinguished Service Medal
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|Navy Distinguished Service Medal
|-
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|Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal
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|Legion of Merit with two bronze oak leaf clusters
|-
|
|Distinguished Flying Cross
|-
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|Meritorious Service Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters
|-
|
|Air Medal with two silver and one bronze oak leaf cluster
|-
|
|Air Force Commendation Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters
|- style="background:#ccf; text-align:center;"
| colspan="2" |Unit awards
|-
|
|Presidential Unit Citation
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|Joint Meritorious Unit Award
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|Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Valor device and bronze oak leaf cluster
|-
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|Air Force Organizational Excellence Award with two oak leaf clusters
|- style="background:#ccf; text-align:center;"
| colspan="2" |Service awards
|-
|
|Combat Readiness Medal
|- style="background:#ccf; text-align:center;"
| colspan="2" |Campaign and service medals
|-
|
|National Defense Service Medal with two bronze service stars
|-
|
|Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
|-
|
|Vietnam Service Medal with three bronze service stars
|-
|
|Armed Forces Service Medal
|- style="background:#ccf; text-align:center;"
| colspan="2" |Service, training, and marksmanship awards
|-
|
|Air Force Overseas Short Tour Service Ribbon with bronze oak leaf cluster
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|Air Force Overseas Long Tour Service Ribbon with two bronze oak leaf clusters
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|Air Force Longevity Service Award with silver and three bronze oak leaf clusters
|-
|
|Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon
|-
|
|Air Force Training Ribbon
|- style="background:#ccf; text-align:center;"
| colspan="2" |Foreign awards
|-
|
|Chilean Grand Cross of the Order of Aeronautical Merit
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|
|South Korean Order of National Security Merit, Tong-il Medal
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|
|Japanese Order of the Rising Sun, 1st Class
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|Japanese Order of the Sacred Treasure
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|The Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand, 1st Class
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|Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, Knight Commander's Cross
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|Spanish Grand Cross of the Order of Aeronautical Merit
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|Singaporean Meritorious Service Medal (Military)
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|Brazilian Order of Aeronautical Merit, Grand Officer
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|
|French Legion of Honour, Commandeur Medal
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|
|Netherlands Order of Orange-Nassau w/ swords, Commander
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|Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Award
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|NATO Medal for Former Yugoslavia
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|SICOFAA Legion of Merit Officer Medal
|-
|
|Vietnam Campaign Medal
|}
Effective dates of promotion
Popular culture
General Michael E. Ryan appeared as himself in the Stargate SG-1 4th season episode 19 "Prodigy", a cable television series filmed in Canada receiving technical assistance from the Air Force Entertainment Liaison Office. He agreed to guest-star on Stargate SG-1 because as he put it, "The ideas that come out of science fiction are often more science than fiction." Lead actor Richard Dean Anderson later recalled asking General Ryan off camera if he had subordinates as irreverent as Anderson's character Jack O'Neill. According to Anderson the reply was, "Son, yes. We've got colonels like you and worse."
References
External links
- Official USAF Biography
- Appearances on C-SPAN