Air Marshal Melvin Ernest Glanville Hupfeld, (born 7 March 1962) is a retired senior officer of the

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

. He served as Air Commander Australia from 2012 to 2014 and was the acting and final

Chief Capability Development Group The Chief of Capability Development Group (CCDG) was head of the Capability Development Group (CDG) in the Australian Department of Defence, part of the Australian Defence Organisation. This position was created in December 2003 and disbanded t ...

(2015–16), before being appointed as Head Force Design in the Vice Chief of the Defence Force Group (2016–18). He was promoted air marshal and made Chief of Joint Operations in May 2018, and succeeded Air Marshal Leo Davies as Chief of Air Force in July 2019.

Early life and education

Hupfeld was born in Sydney, New South Wales, on 7 March 1962, and joined the Royal Australian Air Force 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 Ai ...

in 1980. He finished his training in 1983, won the 'Flying Prize' and graduated with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...

degree. He completed a Master of Arts degree in Defence Studies at King's College London in 1997.

RAAF career

During Hupfeld's career he has flown the

Dassault Mirage III The Dassault Mirage III () is a family of single/dual-seat, single-engine, fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by French aircraft company Dassault Aviation. It was the first Western European combat aircraft to exceed Mach number, Mach 2 ...

and

McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is an all-weather, twinjet, twin-engine, supersonic aircraft, supersonic, carrier-based aircraft, carrier-capable, Multirole combat aircraft, multirole combat aircraft, designed as both a Fighter aircraft, ...

flying mainly with No. 3 Squadron RAAF. Hupfeld was awarded the

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) The Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) is a military decoration awarded to ...

on 27 November 2003 for his command of No. 75 Squadron RAAF during

Operation Falconer Falconer may refer to: * A person skilled in the art of falconry People * Falconer (surname), a family name * Falconer Larkworthy (1833–1928), New Zealand banker and financier * Falconer Madan (1851—1935), librarian of the Bodleian Librar ...

,It's an Honour Distinguished Service Cross
retrieved 6 June 2012 and the squadron was awarded the

Meritorious Unit Citation The Meritorious Unit Citation is a collective group decoration awarded to members of Australian military units. It recognises sustained outstanding service in warlike operations. The Meritorious Unit Citation was created in 1991, along with the ...

. Hupfeld has commanded several RAAF units during his career, including No. 75 Squadron RAAF,

No. 2 Operational Conversion Unit RAAF No. 2 Operational Conversion Unit (No. 2 OCU) is a fighter training unit of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Located at RAAF Base Williamtown, New South Wales, the unit trains pilots to operate the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II ...

, No. 81 Wing RAAF, and

Air Combat Group RAAF The Royal Australian Air Force's Air Combat Group (ACG) is the group which administers the RAAF's fighter and bomber aircraft. ACG was formed on 7 February 2002 by merging the RAAF's Tactical Fighter Group and Strike Reconnaissance Group in a ...

. Hupfeld was promoted to air vice marshal and appointed as Air Commander Australia on 3 February 2012. He moved to the

Capability Development Group The Chief of Capability Development Group (CCDG) was head of the Capability Development Group (CDG) in the Australian Department of Defence, part of the Australian Defence Organisation. This position was created in December 2003 and disbanded ...

, as Head Capability Systems, in September 2014, before being appointed the acting and final

in 2015, and then Head Force Design in the Vice Chief of the Defence Force Group from 2016. Hupfeld was promoted air marshal and appointed Chief of Joint Operations on 24 May 2018. He succeeded Air Marshal Leo Davies as Chief of Air Force on 3 July 2019. Hupfeld was appointed an Officer of the National Order of Merit by the French government on 15 February 2021. The award recognised his contribution to bilateral Australian–French military cooperation, most notably "in the fight against Daesch in the Middle-East and in ... combined defence and security operations in the South Pacific" as Chief of Joint Operations. On 14 September 2021 he was awarded the

Meritorious Service Medal A Meritorious Service Medal is an award presented to denote acts of meritorious service, and sometimes gallantry, that are worthy of recognition. Notable medals with similar names include: * Meritorious Civilian Service Award *Meritorious Service Me ...

by Singapore's Minister for Defence Ng Eng Hen. Hupfeld was also awarded the Air Force Meritorious Service Star, First Class by Indonesia on 23 February 2022.

Personal life

Hupfeld is married to Louise and his interests include cycling, running, fishing, light aircraft, hang-gliding and sailing.

References

External links

Royal Australian Air Force Biography
, - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hupfeld, Melvin 1962 births Air Commanders (Australia) Alumni of King's College London Australian aviators Australian military personnel of the Iraq War Living people Officers of the Ordre national du Mérite Officers of the Order of Australia People from Sydney Military personnel from New South Wales Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) Recipients of the Meritorious Unit Citation Royal Australian Air Force air marshals