Rodney J. McKinley (born January 17, 1956) is a retired airman of 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 ...

who served as the 15th Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force from 2006 to 2009.

Military career

McKinley grew up in

Mt. Orab, Ohio Mount Orab is a village in Brown County, Ohio, United States. The population was 3,664 at the 2010 census. History Mount Orab was laid out in 1850. The village's name most likely is derived from Mount Horeb, a place in the Hebrew Bible. The Cin ...

, graduating from

Western Brown High School Western Brown High School is a Public school (government funded)#USA, public high school located in Mount Orab, Ohio, in the southwestern part of the state. It is the only high school in the Western Brown Local Schools District. The school mascot ...

in 1974. He originally entered the

in 1974, took a break in service in 1977 to attend college, and re-entered the Air Force in 1982. His background includes various duties in medical and aircraft maintenance, and as a first sergeant and Command Chief Master Sergeant at wing,

numbered air force A Numbered Air Force (NAF) is a type of organization in the United States Air Force that is subordinate to a List of Major Commands of the United States Air Force, major command (MAJCOM) and has assigned to it operational units such as wings, squ ...

and

major command Major Command or Major Commands are large formations of the United States Armed Forces. Historically, a Major Command is the highest level of command. Within the United States Army, the acronym MACOM is used for Major Command. Within the United Stat ...

levels. His assignments include bases in

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

, and

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

. He also served overseas in the Philippines, Italy and Germany, and deployed to Southwest Asia in support of operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. McKinley served as Command Chief Master Sergeant of the Pacific Air Forces at Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii. He was appointed to the position of Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force on June 30, 2006. In this post, McKinley represented the highest

enlisted Enlisted may refer to: * Enlisted rank An enlisted rank (also known as an enlisted grade or enlisted rate) is, in some armed services, any rank below that of a commissioned officer. The term can be inclusive of non-commissioned officers or ...

level of leadership and, as such, provided direction for the enlisted corps and represents their interests, as appropriate, to the American public, and to those in all levels of government. He served as the personal adviser to the

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

and the secretary of the Air Force on all issues regarding the welfare, readiness, morale, and proper utilization and progress of the enlisted force.

Post-military career

McKinley retired from the United States Air Force in June 2009, having served for over 30 years. From then to November 2012, he was

senior vice president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

for

strategic partnership A strategic partnership (also see strategic alliance) is a relationship between two commercial enterprises, usually formalized by one or more business contracts. A strategic partnership will usually fall short of a legal partnership entity, agency, ...

s at MicroTech, a privately held information technology services company. Since January 2017, he has served on the Defense Advisory Committee on Investigations, Prosecution, and Defense of Sexual Assault in the US Department of Defense.

Education

Assignments

#July 1974 – August 1974, student, basic military training,

Lackland AFB Lackland Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located in Bexar County, Texas. The base is under the jurisdiction of the 802d Mission Support Group, Air Education and Training Command (AETC) and an enclave of the city of Sa ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

#August 1974 – November 1974, medical service specialist technical training,

Sheppard AFB Sheppard Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located north of the central business district of Wichita Falls, in Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the largest training base and most diversified in Air Education ...

, Texas #November 1974 – August 1977, emergency room technician,

Seymour Johnson AFB Seymour Johnson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located in Goldsboro, North Carolina. The base is named for U.S. Navy Lt. Seymour A. Johnson, a test pilot from Goldsboro who died in an airplane crash near Norbeck, Maryland, ...

, NC #August 1977 – April 1982, separated from the Air Force #April 1982 – June 1982, aircraft maintenance technology technical training, Sheppard AFB, Texas #June 1982 – June 1987, phase dock inspector, maintenance instructor, quality assurance inspector, noncommissioned officer in charge of aircraft weight and balance and functional check flights, 354th Tactical Fighter Wing, Myrtle Beach AFB, SC #June 1987 – June 1991, dedicated crew chief, quality assurance inspector, noncommissioned officer in charge aircraft weight and balance and functional check flights, chief inspector of quality assurance, 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing, Clark Air Base, Philippines #June 1991 – June 1992, First Sergeant, 354th Communications and Services squadrons, Myrtle Beach AFB, SC #June 1992 – January 1994, First Sergeant, 401st Munitions Support Squadron, Ghedi AB,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

#January 1994 – July 2000, First Sergeant, 3rd Combat Communications Support Squadron, 965th Airborne Air Control Squadron, 552nd Equipment Maintenance Squadron, and 552nd Aircraft Generation Squadron,

Tinker AFB Tinker Air Force Base is a major United States Air Force base, with tenant U.S. Navy and other Department of Defense missions, located in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, surrounded by Del City, Oklahoma City, and Midwest City. The base, originally ...

, OK #July 2000 – July 2001, First Sergeant, 723rd Air Mobility Squadron, Ramstein AB,

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

#August 2001 – September 2002, Command Chief Master Sergeant, 86th Airlift Wing, Ramstein AB, Germany #September 2002 – June 2004, Command Chief Master Sergeant, 1st Fighter Wing, Langley AFB, VA (February 2003 – June 2003, Command Chief Master Sergeant,

379th Air Expeditionary Wing The 379th Air Expeditionary Wing is a provisional United States Air Force unit assigned to Air Combat Command. As a provisional unit, it may be activated or inactivated at any time. The Wing is one of the largest, most diverse expeditionary win ...

, Southwest Asia) #June 2004 – March 2005, Command Chief Master Sergeant, 11th Air Force, Elmendorf AFB, AK #March 2005 – June 2006, Command Chief Master Sergeant, Pacific Air Forces,

Hickam AFB Hickam Air Force Base is a United States Air Force installation, named in honor of aviation pioneer Lieutenant Colonel Horace Meek Hickam. The installation merged in 2010 with Naval Station Pearl Harbor to become part of the newly formed Joint B ...

, HI #June 2006 – June 2009, Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force,

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 ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Awards and decorations

Other achievements

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McKinley, Rodney J. Living people People from Georgetown, Ohio Community College of the Air Force alumni Saint Leo University alumni University of Oklahoma alumni Chief Master Sergeants of the United States Air Force 1956 births Recipients of the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Meritorious Service Medal (United States)