Stéphane Abrial (; born 7 September 1954), is a French general who is the previous commander of

Allied Command Transformation Allied Command Transformation (ACT) (French: ''Commandement allié Transformation'') is a military command of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), formed in 2003 after restructuring. It was intended to lead military transformation of ...

based in

Norfolk, VA Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Bea ...

, one of the two

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

strategic commands. His previous posting was as the

Chief of Staff of the French Air Force Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...

French military career

General Stéphane Abrial graduated in 1973 from the French Air Force academy ( École de l'air), and in 1974 from the

U.S. Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and Uni ...

. He completed pilot training at the French Air Force Academy in 1976. From 1977 to 1991, he served as a fighter pilot both in France (in

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the Esca ...

Dijon Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earl ...

and

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower * Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum ...

) and, from 1981 to 1984, in a West German Luftwaffe unit. In 1988, he assisted the Greek Air Force in converting its first unit equipped with the

Mirage 2000 The Dassault Mirage 2000 is a French multirole, single-engine, fourth-generation jet fighter manufactured by Dassault Aviation. It was designed in the late 1970s as a lightweight fighter to replace the Mirage III for the French Air Force ('' ...

. In 1991, he took part in the first

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

as a fighter pilot and commander of the French Air Force's 5th Fighter Squadron. Later that year, he attended the

Air War College The Air War College (AWC) is the senior Professional Military Education (PME) school of the U.S. Air Force. A part of the United States Air Force's Air University, AWC emphasizes the employment of air, space, and cyberspace in joint operati ...

, at

Maxwell Air Force Base Maxwell Air Force Base , officially known as Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base, is a United States Air Force (USAF) installation under the Air Education and Training Command (AETC). The installation is located in Montgomery, Alabama, United States ...

Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County. Named for the Irish soldier Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River, on the coastal Plain of the Gulf of Mexico. In the 202 ...

. From 1992 to 1996, he served in the staff of the French Air Force Chief of Staff and the Chief of Defense Staff. From 1996 to 1999, he served at NATO Headquarters, in

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 ...

. In 2000, he became deputy head of the French President's military staff, and in 2002 was appointed head of the French Prime Minister's military staff. In 2005, General Abrial became head of the French Air Defense headquarters, in

Taverny Taverny () is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Inhabitants are called ''Tabernaciens''. History In 1806 the commune of Taverny merged with the neighboring commune of Saint-Leu, ...

, and in 2006 Air Force Chief of Staff.

NATO Supreme Allied Commander

Gen. Stéphane Abrial received appointment by the

North Atlantic Council The North Atlantic Council (NAC) is the principal political decision-making body of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), consisting of permanent representatives of its member countries. It was established by Article 9 Article ofte ...

as Supreme Allied Commander Transformation on 29 July 2009, the first European to be appointed permanently as head of a NATO strategic command. In April 2010, he received a Distinguished Leadership Award from the

Atlantic Council The Atlantic Council is an American think tank in the field of international affairs, favoring Atlanticism, founded in 1961. It manages sixteen regional centers and functional programs related to international security and global economic pro ...

Major military awards

*Grand Officer of the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...

(France) *Officer of the

Ordre national du Mérite The Ordre national du Mérite (; en, National Order of Merit) is a French order of merit with membership awarded by the President of the French Republic, founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle. The reason for the order's es ...

(France) * Croix de guerre des TOE with one silver-gilt star (France) *

Croix du Combattant The Combatant's Cross (french: "Croix du combattant") is a French decoration that recognizes, as its name implies, those who fought in combat for France. The Poilus (French combat soldiers) of World War I worked toward recognition by the gover ...

(France) *

Médaille de l'Aéronautique The Aeronautical Medal (french: "Médaille de l'Aéronautique") is a state decoration of France established by the decree of February 14, 1945. It is awarded to both military personnel and civilians for outstanding accomplishments related to t ...

(France) *

Overseas Medal The Overseas Medal (french: Médaille d'Outre-Mer) is a commemorative or campaign medal issued to members of the French Armed Forces and other nations in assistance to French troops for participating in operations outside national territory. It rep ...

with two bars (France) *

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 ...

, Commander (USA) * Bundeswehr Cross of Honour in Silver (Germany) *

German Sports Badge The German Sports Badge (German: ''Deutsches Sportabzeichen'' (DSA)) is a decoration of the German Olympic Sports Federation DOSB. The German Sports Badge test is carried out primarily in Germany, and in other countries abroad. History The Ger ...

(Military version in Bronze) *

Order of Abdulaziz al Saud Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...

, First Class (Saudi Arabia) * Kuwait Liberation Medal (Saudi Arabia) *

Kuwait Liberation Medal (Kuwait) The Kuwait Liberation Medal ( ar, وسام التحرير ''Wisām al-Taḥrīr'', , ) is a medal created in 1994 that was issued by the government of Kuwait to both local and foreign military personnel who served in the Persian Gulf War's "Liber ...

*Grand Officer of the Order of Aeronautical Merit (Brazil) * Santos-Dumont Medal of Merit, Brazilian Air Force * Cross of Naval Merit, White Grand Cross (Spain) *

NATO Meritorious Service Medal The NATO Medal is an international military decoration which is awarded to various militaries of the world under the authority of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). It is manufactured by Eekelers-Centini Intl, of Hemiksem, Belgium. ...

*Commemorative Medal of the Chief of General Staff of the Slovak Armed Forces in gold * Order of the Crown, Grand Cross (Belgium) *

Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland The Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Order Zasługi Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej) is a Polish order of merit created in 1974, awarded to persons who have rendered great service to Poland. It is granted to foreigners or Poles resident a ...

, Commander's Crosshttp://www.nato.int/nato_static/assets/pictures/2012_09_120914a-cmc-ceremony/20120925_120914a-010_rdax_600x428.JPG *

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

, Commander's Cross (7 September 2015)

Civilian career

Since July 2015, Abrial has been senior executive vice president of international and public affairs of

Safran Safran S.A. is a French multinational company that designs, develops and manufactures aircraft engines, rocket engines as well as various aerospace and defense-related equipment or their components. It was formed by a merger between SNECMA an ...

. Since February 2014, Abrial has also been Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Musée de l’air et de l’espace Paris, since April 2013, Director of the

, and, since December 2013, member of the Advisory Board of the

Aspen Institute The Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1949 as the Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies. The institute's stated aim is the realization of "a free, just, and equitable society" through seminars, policy programs ...

France.

Notes

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Abrial, Stephane Atlantic Council 1954 births Living people People from Gers French Air Force generals Grand Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Officers of the Ordre national du Mérite Recipients of the Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures Recipients of the Aeronautical Medal Commanders of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Badge of Honour of the Bundeswehr Commanders of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Grand Crosses of Naval Merit Grand Crosses of the Order of the Crown (Belgium) French military personnel of the Gulf War Chiefs of the Staff of the French Air and Space Force École de l'air alumni