Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Frances Jennifer Allen, is a senior officer serving in the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

. On June 28, 2021, she assumed office as Vice Chief of the Defence Staff, becoming the first woman to hold the position.

Military career

Allen's prior roles included serving as the Canadian military's director general for cyberspace, the

National Defence Headquarters National Defence Headquarters (NDHQ) ( French: ''Quartiers généraux de la Défense nationale'' (''QGDN'')) was created through the integration of Canadian Armed Forces Headquarters (CAF HQ) with the civilian Department of National Defence (DN ...

director general for information management operations, the joint force cyber component commander, and deputy Vice Chief of the Defence Staff. In July 2020, Allen was appointed as Canada's military representative at

NATO headquarters The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is headquartered in a complex in Haren, Belgium, Haren, part of the Brussels (municipality), City of Brussels municipality of Belgium. The staff at the headquarters is composed of national delegation ...

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

. Allen was considered a contender to become Chief of the Defence Staff after the departure of General

Jonathan Vance General Jonathan Holbert Vance (born January 3, 1964) is a retired Canadian Forces officer who served as a general in the Canadian Army. Vance was the chief of the Defence Staff from 2015 to 2021. In July 2021, Vance was charged with one cou ...

in January 2021, but that position was given to Admiral Art McDonald. On March 9, 2021, it was announced that Allen would succeed Lieutenant-General

Michael Rouleau Michael Norman Rouleau (born July 4, 1967) is a Canadian Forces officer serving as a lieutenant-general in the Canadian Army. He was the vice chief of the Defence Staff from July 15, 2020 until June 14, 2021. Education Rouleau obtained a Bach ...

as Vice Chief of the Defence Staff, making her the first woman to serve in that role. Allen's appointment to the vice chief position came amidst increased public and political scrutiny of the senior leadership of the Canadian Armed Forces because of sexual misconduct investigations into the two previous chiefs of the Defence Staff (Vance and McDonald). Allen was appointed an Officer of the Order of Military Merit on 6 March 2017, and advanced to a

Commander of the Order of Military Merit "Service before self" , eligibility = Standing membership in the Canadian Forces , criteria = Conspicuous merit and exceptional service , status = Currently constituted , head_title = Sovereign , head = Cha ...

on 27 May 2019.

Notes

References

External links

Frances J. Allen – Order of Military Merit page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Frances J. Living people Royal Canadian Air Force generals Canadian female military personnel Year of birth missing (living people) Commanders of the Order of Military Merit (Canada) Vice Chiefs of the Defence Staff (Canada)