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 ...

Gavan John Reynolds, is a senior officer in the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

. He joined the army via the

Royal Military College, Duntroon lit: Learning promotes strength , established = , type = Military college , chancellor = , head_label = Commandant , head = Brigadier Ana Duncan , principal = , city = Campbell , state = ...

in 1985 and has spent much of his career in

military intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist commanders in their decisions. This aim is achieved by providing an assessment of data from a ...

. He has commanded the 1st Intelligence Battalion (2004–05) and the 6th Combat Support Brigade (2013–15), and deployed on operations to the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...

, Lebanon and Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan. He served as Head Military Strategic Plans from 2019 to 2020, before being appointed as the inaugural

Chief of Defence Intelligence Defence Intelligence (DI) is an organisation within the United Kingdom intelligence community which focuses on gathering and analysing military intelligence. It differs from the UK's intelligence agencies (MI6, GCHQ and MI5) in that it is an ...

in July 2020.

Military career

Reynolds entered the

as an

officer cadet Officer Cadet is a rank held by military cadets during their training to become commissioned officers. In the United Kingdom, the rank is also used by members of University Royal Naval Units, University Officer Training Corps and University Air ...

in July 1985. Following graduation in 1987, Reynolds was appointed a troop commander in the 16th Air Defence Regiment,

Royal Australian Artillery The Royal Regiment of Australian Artillery, normally referred to as the Royal Australian Artillery (RAA), is a Regiment of the Australian Army descended from the original colonial artillery units prior to Australia's federation. Australia's first ...

. During the

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

, he deployed to the

in command of an

RBS 70 RBS 70 (Robotsystem 70) is a man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) designed for anti-aircraft warfare in all climate zones and with little to no support from other forces. Originally designed and manufactured by the Swedish defence firm of ...

detachment aboard . He subsequently served as aide-de-camp to the Chief of Army, S2 (intelligence officer) in the 3rd Brigade, an analyst in the

Defence Intelligence Organisation The Defence Intelligence Organisation (DIO) is an Australian government military intelligence agency responsible for strategic intelligence and technical intelligence assessments, advising defence and government decision-making on national sec ...

, a tactics instructor at the Land Warfare Centre in

Canungra, Queensland Canungra is a rural town and locality in the Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Canungra had a population of 1,229 people. Geography Located in South East Queensland, Canungra is situated in the Gold Coast hint ...

, and deployed to Syria and Lebanon as a military observer with the

United Nations Truce Supervision Organization The United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) is an organization founded on 29 May 1948 for peacekeeping in the Middle East. Established amidst the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, its primary task was initially to provide the military com ...

. Reynolds commanded the 1st Intelligence Battalion from 2004 to 2005 and, following promotion to

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

in 2007, deployed as J2 in the Australian Joint Task Force in Iraq. Following his return to Australia, Reynolds served as Director of Officer Career Management – Army and later as Commander Career Management – Army. In recognition of his "exceptional service" to intelligence and career management in these roles, Reynolds was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in the

2010 Queen's Birthday Honours The 2010 Birthday Honours for the Commonwealth realms were announced to celebrate the Queen's Birthday on 7 June 2010 in New Zealand, on 12 June 2010 in the United Kingdom, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Sain ...

. Reynolds attended the

Centre for Defence and Strategic Studies The Australian Defence College (ADC) comprises three joint education and training organisations operated by the Australian Defence Force in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: * the War College, * the Australian Defence Force Training Cent ...

in 2010 and, in September, was promoted

brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. In ...

and deployed to Afghanistan with the Headquarters

International Security Assistance Force ' ps, کمک او همکاري ' , allies = Afghanistan , opponents = Taliban Al-Qaeda , commander1 = , commander1_label = Commander , commander2 = , commander2_label = , commander3 = , comman ...

. He returned to Australia as Director General Personnel – Army from June 2011 to December 2012, before attending the

Higher Command and Staff Course The Higher Command and Staff Course is a staff course for senior military officers of the United Kingdom armed forces and allies. It is taught at the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom in Shrivenham, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom. The course is p ...

at the

Joint Services Command and Staff College Joint Services Command and Staff College (JSCSC) is a British military academic establishment providing training and education to experienced officers of the Royal Navy, Army, Royal Air Force, Ministry of Defence Civil Service, and serving offic ...

in the United Kingdom in 2013. Reynolds commanded the 6th Combat Support Brigade from September 2013 to October 2015 and, on promotion to

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

, was appointed the Australian Military Representative to NATO and the EU from 2016 to 2018. He was next appointed Head Military Strategic Plans in the Vice Chief of Defence Force Group from January 2019. In June 2020 the Minister for Defence, Senator

Linda Reynolds Linda Karen Reynolds (born 16 May 1965) is an Australian politician. She is a member of the Liberal Party and has served as a Senator for Western Australia since 2014. She held senior ministerial office as a cabinet minister in the Morrison g ...

, announced the creation of the Defence Intelligence Group (DIG) to unify and provide greater coordination to intelligence capabilities in the

Australian Defence Force The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is the military organisation responsible for the defence of the Commonwealth of Australia and its national interests. It consists of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Australian Army, Royal Australian Air Forc ...

. The DIG includes oversight for the Defence Intelligence Organisation and the

Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation The Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation (AGO) is an Australian government intelligence agency that is part of the Department of Defence responsible for the collection, analysis, and distribution of geospatial intelligence (GEOINT) in ...

. Reynolds was promoted

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 ...

and appointed the inaugural

, responsible for the DIG, in July 2020. Reynolds was advanced to

Officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in the 2022 Queen's Birthday Honours in recognition of his "exceptional leadership in successive significant appointments"; namely as Australian Military Representative to NATO, Head Military Strategic Plans, and Chief of Defence Intelligence.

Personal life

Reynolds is married and has two children. He holds a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in Geography with

Honours Honour (British English) or honor (American English; see spelling differences) is the idea of a bond between an individual and a society as a quality of a person that is both of social teaching and of personal ethos, that manifests itself as a ...

, a Master of Defence Studies, and a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reynolds, Gavan Australian generals Australian military personnel of the Gulf War Australian military personnel of the Iraq War Australian military personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Graduates of Joint Services Command and Staff College Living people Officers of the Order of Australia Royal Military College, Duntroon graduates University of New South Wales alumni Year of birth missing (living people)