General Alton Davis Slay, Sr. (November 11, 1924 – November 16, 2015) was a four star

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

general and former commander,

Air Force Systems Command The Air Force Systems Command (AFSC) is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command. It was established in April 1951, being split off from Air Materiel Command. The mission of AFSC was Research and Development for new weapons systems. Ove ...

Andrews Air Force Base Andrews Air Force Base (Andrews AFB, AAFB) is the airfield portion of Joint Base Andrews, which is under the jurisdiction of the United States Air Force. In 2009, Andrews Air Force Base merged with Naval Air Facility Washington to form Joint B ...

, Maryland. Slay was a native of

Crystal Springs, Mississippi Crystal Springs is a city in Copiah County, Mississippi, Copiah County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 5,044 as of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, down from 5,873 in 2000. It is part of the Jackson, Mississippi, Jackson ...

. He was a

command pilot U.S. Air Force aeronautical ratings are military aviation skill standards established and awarded by the United States Air Force for commissioned officers participating in "regular and frequent flight",The standard by which flight status has bee ...

with more than 8,000 flying hours, principally in single-engine and jet fighter aircraft, accumulated since his graduation from flying school at

Craig Field Craig Field (born 12 December 1972) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer. Field played for South Sydney, Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles, Balmain Tigers and Wests Tigers. His primary position was at . His talent and leaders ...

, Alabama, in 1944. He flew 181 combat missions over Southeast Asia in jet fighters. He was a graduate of the Navy Parachutist School and wore the Senior Air Force Parachutist Badge and the Senior Missileman Badge. Slay was a 1965 graduate of

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

at Washington, D.C., with a degree in mathematics; he attended the six-week

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...

Advanced Management Program; and the Canadian National Defence College. His assignments included deputy chief of staff, research and development, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C., vice commander of the

Air Training Command Air Training Command (ATC) is a former United States Air Force (USAF) Major Command designation. It was headquartered at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas, but was initially formed at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. It was re-designated as Ai ...

, San Antonio, Texas; commander of the Lowry Technical Training Command, Denver; deputy chief of staff, operations,

Seventh Air Force The Seventh Air Force (Air Forces Korea) (7 AF) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). It is headquartered at Osan Air Base, South Korea. The command's mission is to plan and direct air component operations in ...

, in Southeast Asia; director of operations,

Military Assistance Command, Vietnam U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) was a joint-service command of the United States Department of Defense. MACV was created on 8 February 1962, in response to the increase in United States military assistance to South Vietnam. MACV ...

; deputy chief of staff, operations, Air Force Systems Command; commander of the

Air Force Flight Test Center The Air Force Test Center (AFTC) is a development and test organization of the United States Air Force. It conducts research, development, test, and evaluation of aerospace systems from concept to deployment. It has test flown every aircraft in ...

Edwards Air Force Base Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force installation in California. Most of the base sits in Kern County, but its eastern end is in San Bernardino County and a southern arm is in Los Angeles County. The hub of the base is E ...

, California; and assistant deputy chief of staff, plans and operations,

U.S. Air Forces in Europe The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. He assumed command of Systems Command in March 1978, and was promoted to four star rank on April 1, 1978. Slay retired from the Air Force on January 31, 1981.

Awards and decorations

In 2005, Slay won four gold medals at the

National Senior Games The National Senior Games (Senior Olympics) are a sports competition for senior citizens in the United States. It is conducted by the National Senior Games Association (NSGA) once every two years. Akin to the Summer Olympics, it is a multi-sport ...

in cycling. As of 2007, at age 83, he was still competing in the Senior Games cycling events. He resided in

Warrenton, Virginia Warrenton is a town in Fauquier County, Virginia, of which it is the seat of government. The population was 9,611 at the 2010 census, up from 6,670 at the 2000 census. The estimated population in 2019 was 10,027. It is at the junction of U.S. R ...

until he died of blood cancer on November 16, 2015, 5 days after his 91st birthday.

References

1924 births 2015 deaths People from Crystal Springs, Mississippi United States Air Force generals United States Air Force personnel of the Vietnam War Columbian College of Arts and Sciences alumni Recipients of the Order of the Sword (United States) People from Warrenton, Virginia Recipients of the Distinguished Service Order (Vietnam) {{USAF-bio-stub