Between October 1994 and his retirement in September 1997, General Fogleman was chief of staff of the United States Air Force. During his tenure, he was known as a no-nonsense consensus builder who would have the Air Force work more cooperatively with the other military branches. He also added to the definition of global presence “to include not only…air, land, and sea forces, but…space forces and information-based capabilities.” Prior to that, in August 1992, he became commander in chief of U.S. Transportation Command and commander of Air Mobility Command at Scott AFB, Ill., where he was promoted to four-star status. He previously served as deputy director of programs and evaluation at the Pentagon as well as chairman of the Air Staff Board.

Gen. Fogleman is also a veteran of 240 combat missions in Vietnam. On Sept. 12, 1968, when stationed at Bien Hoa Air Base, South Vietnam, he was shot down by multiple hits from small arms fire. He ejected over hostile territory and hid on the ground from an enemy that was as close as 20 yards. He was picked up by a Cobra helicopter and rode on the outside until reaching the safety of a Special Forces camp, only to fly combat again the next day.

Gen. Fogleman attended the Army War College and holds a Master of Arts degree in military and political science from Duke University along with a Bachelor of Science degree from the U.S. Air Force Academy. He has taught at the Air Force Academy as an associate professor of history.