Richard C. Johnston is a retired

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 ...

in the

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 ...

Career

Johnston was commissioned an officer in 1982. He was given command of the

317th Airlift Group The 317th Airlift Wing (317 AW) is a United States Air Force unit, stationed at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas. Assigned to Air Mobility Command (AMC) Eighteenth Air Force, the 317 AW operates as a tenant unit at Dyess AFB, an installation under t ...

and the

320th Air Expeditionary Wing The 320th Air Expeditionary Wing (320 AEW) is a provisional United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force District of Washington. It is stationed at Bolling AFB, District of Columbia. The 320 AEW may be activated or inactivated at any tim ...

during the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...

before being assigned to the United States Transportation Command in 2004. Later he was given command of the 86th Airlift Wing. In 2009 he was assigned to

The Pentagon The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense. It was constructed on an accelerated schedule during World War II. As a symbol of the U.S. military, the phrase ''The Pentagon'' is often used as a metony ...

. Awards he has received include the

Defense Superior Service Medal The Defense Superior Service Medal (DSSM) is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members who perform superior meritorious service in a position of significant ...

, the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

with two oak leaf clusters, the

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

, the Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters, the

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

with three oak leaf clusters, the Aerial Achievement Medal, the Air Force Commendation Medal, the Outstanding Unit Award with

valor device Valor, valour, or valorous may mean: * Courage, a similar meaning * Virtue ethics, roughly "courage in defense of a noble cause" Entertainment * Valor (band), a Christian gospel music group * Valor Kand, a member of the band Christian Death * ' ...

and two silver oak leaf clusters, the Combat Readiness Medal with four oak leaf clusters, the

Southwest Asia Service Medal The Southwest Asia Service Medal (SASM or SWASM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was created by order of President George H.W. Bush on March 12, 1991. The award is intended to recognize those military service members ...

with two

service stars A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star inch (4.8 mm) in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or ser ...

, the

Kosovo Campaign Medal The Kosovo Campaign Medal (KCM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces established by of President Bill Clinton on May 3, 2000. The medal recognizes military service performed in Kosovo from March 24, 1999 through December 31, 2013. ...

, and the

Humanitarian Service Medal The Humanitarian Service Medal (HSM) is a military service medal of the United States Armed Forces which was created on January 19, 1977 by President Gerald Ford under . The medal may be awarded to members of the United States military (includi ...

Education

*B.A., Criminal Justice – University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire *Graduate –

Squadron Officer School Squadron Officer School (SOS), is a 5.5-week-long Professional Military Education (PME) course for U.S. Air Force and Space Force Captains, Department of the Air Force Civilian (DAFC) equivalents and International Officers. It fulfills the U.S ...

*M.S.,

Operational Research Operations research ( en-GB, operational research) (U.S. Air Force Specialty Code: Operations Analysis), often shortened to the initialism OR, is a discipline that deals with the development and application of analytical methods to improve decis ...

and

Business Management Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...

–

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...

*Graduate – United States Army Command and General Staff College *Graduate – Air War College *M.S., National Security Strategy –

National War College The National War College (NWC) of the United States is a school in the National Defense University. It is housed in Roosevelt Hall on Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C., the third-oldest Army post still active. History The National War Colle ...

*Graduate, Black Sea Security Program –

John F. Kennedy School of Government The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

*Graduate, Program for Senior Managers in Government –

Assignments

1. October 1981 - October 1982, student, undergraduate pilot training, Vance AFB, Okla. 2. October 1982 - February 1983, C-130 pilot training, Little Rock AFB, Ark. 3 February 1983 - June 1985, aircraft commander, 54th Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, Andersen AFB, Guam 4 June 1985 - June 1991, instructor pilot and evaluator pilot, 50th Tactical Airlift Squadron; assistant chief, Standardization and Evaluation, 314th Tactical Airlift Group; and executive officer, 314th Tactical Airlift Wing, Little Rock AFB, Ark. 5. June 1991 - June 1993, Chief of Tactical Airlift Assignments and Chief of Rated Officer Assignments, Directorate of Personnel, Headquarters Military Airlift Command, Scott AFB, Ill. 6. June 1993 - June 1994, student, Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kan. 7. June 1994 - June 1997, Chief of Mobility Forces Programming Branch, and later executive officer for the Director of Forces and then Director of Joint Matters, Deputy Chief of Staff for Air and Space Operations, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. 8. June 1997 - February 2000, operations officer then Commander, 2nd Air Refueling Squadron, McGuire AFB, N.J. 9. February 2000 - August 2001, Chief, Senior Officer Management Division, Directorate of Personnel, Headquarters Air Mobility Command, Scott AFB, Ill. 10. August 2001 - June 2002, student, National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C. 11. July 2002 - March 2004, Commander, 317th Airlift Group, Dyess AFB, Texas (November 2002 - June 2003, Commander, 320th Air Expeditionary Wing, Southwest Asia) 12. March 2004 - August 2004, Deputy Director of Operations, U.S. Transportation Command, Scott AFB, Ill. 13. August 2004 - September 2005, executive officer to the Commander, USTRANSCOM, and to the Commander, Air Mobility Command, Scott AFB, Ill. 14. September 2005 - March 2006, executive officer to the Commander, USTRANSCOM, Scott AFB, Ill. 15. April 2006 - December 2007, Commander, 86th Airlift Wing, Ramstein AB, and Commander, Kaiserslautern Military Community, Germany 16. December 2007 - September 2009, Director, Plans, Programs and Analyses, Headquarters U.S. Air Forces in Europe, Ramstein AB, Germany 17. September 2009 - September 2011, Director, Air Force Strategic Planning, Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Plans and Programs, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. 18. September 2011 – September 2014, Assistant Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force, International Affairs, Office of the Under Secretary of the Air Force, Washington, D.C.

Summary of Joint Assignment

1. March 2004 - August 2004, Deputy Director of Operations, USTRANSCOM, Scott AFB, Ill., as a colonel 2. August 2004 - September 2005, executive officer to the Commander, USTRANSCOM, and to the Commander, Air Mobility Command, Scott AFB, Ill., as a colonel 3. September 2005 - March 2006, executive officer to the Commander, USTRANSCOM, Scott AFB, Ill., as a colonel

Flight Information

Rating: Command pilot Flight hours: More than 4,300 hours Aircraft flown: C-130E/H/J, C-21A, C-37A, C-40B, KC-10A, and WC-130E/H

Effective dates of promotion

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnston, Richard C. Living people United States Air Force generals Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Air Medal United States Air Force personnel of the Gulf War University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire alumni University of Arkansas alumni Harvard Kennedy School alumni National War College alumni Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal 1957 births