List of United States Air Force four-star generals.html



This is a complete list of four-star generals in the United States Air Force. The rank of general (or full general, or four-star general) is the highest rank normally achievable in the U.S. Air Force. It ranks above lieutenant general (three-star general) and below general of the Air Force (five-star general).

There have been 189 four-star generals in the history of the U.S. Air Force. Of these, 185 achieved that rank while on active duty, 3 were promoted after retirement, and one was promoted posthumously. Generals entered the Air Force via several paths: 60 were commissioned via the U.S. Military Academy (USMA), 49 via the aviation cadet program, 30 via Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) at a civilian university, 26 via the U.S. Air Force Academy (USAFA), 9 via AFROTC at a senior military college, 6 via Air Force Officer Training School (OTS), 4 via the U.S. Naval Academy (USNA), 2 via direct commission, one via Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) at a civilian university, one via the Army National Guard (ARNG), and one via the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF).

List of generals

Entries in the following list of four-star generals are indexed by the numerical order in which each officer was promoted to that rank while on active duty, or by an asterisk (*) if the officer did not serve in that rank while on active duty. Each entry lists the general's name, date of rank,¹ active-duty positions held while serving at four-star rank,² number of years of active-duty service at four-star rank (Yrs),³ year commissioned and source of commission,⁴ number of years in commission when promoted to four-star rank (YC),⁵ and other biographical notes.⁶

The list is sortable by last name, date of rank, number of years of active-duty service at four-star rank, year commissioned, and number of years in commission when promoted to four-star rank.