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PERSONNEL
 
 SQUADRON COMMANDERS
 
LIEUTENANT GENERAL TIMOTHY A. KINNAN
 
 
squadron commander
(1985 - 1987)
 
 
biography
 

General Kinnan was born in Tacoma, Wash. Kinnan was born in Tacoma, Washington to the late Henry Wallace ("Wally") Kinnan, and Marjorie Ahrendt. His father, Wally Kinnan, a pioneering television meteorologist and early television personality, was also a B-17 pilot during WWII and was shot down, spending nearly two years as a POW in Stalag Luft III. While interned Wally was a founding member of the Sagan Serenaders, a group of musicians who were immortalized in the movie The Great Escape for holding concerts to cover the sound of digging associated with the escape attempt.

 

His fathers war-time and peace time service created in the Generals a strong interest in the US Air Force. Getting both the interest in flying and an interest in music from his father he had to make a choice between the US Air Force Academy and music school. Kinnan entered the US Air Force Academy in 1966 receiving his commission in 1970.

 

He is a command pilot with more than 3,000 flying hours, primarily in the F-4, F-15 and F-16. As Commander of the 401st Fighter Wing in Aviano, Italy, he led the beddown and support of joint and combined airpower in NATO's Deny Flight Operation over Bosnia and Herzegovina. As Commander of the 347th Wing, he was responsible for the first operational deployment to Southwest Asia under the Air Force's aerospace expeditionary force concept. Other commands include an F-15 squadron, the Air War College and lastly Air Force Doctrine Center and Allied Air Forces Southern Europe, Stabilization Forces Air Component and Kosovo Forces Air Component.

Prior to assuming his last position, General Kinnan served as Vice Director for Strategic Plans and Policy with the Joint Staff in Washington, D.C., supporting the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in developing military strategy and policy within the interagency process in Washington.

 

EDUCATION


1970 Bachelor of Science degree in astronautical and aeronautical engineering, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colo.


1971 Master of Science degree in astronautical and aeronautical engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind.


1974 Distinguished graduate, Squadron Officer School, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.


1976 Air Command and Staff College, by correspondence
1981 Armed Forces Staff College, Norfolk, Va.


1990 Distinguished graduate, National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C.


1995 Joint Force Air Component Commander Course


1997 Joint Flag Officer Warfighting Cours
e

 

ASSIGNMENTS


1. June 1970 - January 1971, student, Air Force Institute of Technology Civilian Institutions Program, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind.

 
2. February 1971 - February 1972, student, Undergraduate Pilot Training, Columbus AFB, Miss.


3. February 1972 - November 1972, student, F-4 Combat Crew Training, George AFB, Calif.


4. December 1972 - August 1976, F-4D pilot, 78th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Royal Air Force Woodbridge, England, and flight examiner, 81st Tactical Fighter Wing, Royal Air Force Bentwaters, England


5. August 1976 - July 1978, weapons and tactics officer, 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing, Clark Air Base, Philippines


6. July 1978 - January 1981, fighter weapons instructor, flight commander, later and assistant operations officer, 414th Fighter Weapons Squadron, Nellis AFB, Nev.


7. January 1981 - June 1981, student, Armed Forces Staff College, Norfolk, Va.


8. June 1981 - June 1983, Air Staff action officer, Directorate of Programs and Evaluation, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.


9. June 1983 - April 1984, executive officer to the Vice Commander, Tactical Air Command, Langley AFB, Va.


10. April 1984 - February 1985, operations officer, 94th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Langley AFB, Va.


11. February 1985 - February 1987, Commander, 318th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, McChord AFB, Wash.


12. February 1987 - July 1989, Director of Operations, 475th Weapons Evaluation Group, and Deputy Commander for Operations, 325th Tactical Training Wing, Tyndall AFB, Fla.


13. July 1989 - June 1990, student, National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C.


14. June 1990 - June 1992, Executive Officer to the Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe, Mons, Belgium


15. June 1992 - August 1993, Commander, 401st Fighter Wing, Aviano Air Base, Italy


16. August 1993 - August 1994, Military Assistant to the Secretary of the Air Force, Washington, D.C.


17. August 1994 - April 1996, Commander, 347th Wing, Moody AFB, Ga.


18. April 1996 - August 1997, Deputy Commander, Headquarters 5th Allied Tactical Air Force, NATO, Vicenza, Italy


19. August 1997 - September 1998, Commandant, Air War College, and Vice Commander, Air University, Maxwell AFB, Ala.


20. September 1998 - December 1999, Commander, Air Force Doctrine Center, Maxwell AFB, Ala.


21. January 2000 - June 2001, Vice Director for Strategic Plans and Policy, the Joint Staff, Washington, D.C.


22. July 2001 - present, U.S. Military Representative to the NATO Military Committee, NATO Headquarters, Brussels, Belgium


 

FLIGHT INFORMATION


Rating: Command pilot


Flight hours: More than 3,000


Aircraft flown: F-4, F-15, and F-16

 

MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS


Defense Distinguished Service Medal with oak leaf cluster


Distinguished Service Medal


Defense Superior Service Medal


Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster


Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters


Air Medal


Air Force Commendation Medal

 

EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION


Second Lieutenant June 3, 1970


First Lieutenant Dec. 3, 1971


Captain Dec. 3, 1973


Major Sept. 1, 1979


Lieutenant Colonel Dec. 1, 1982


Colonel April 1, 1988


Brigadier General July 15, 1994


Major General Oct. 1, 1996

 


Lieutenant General Sept. 1, 2001

 
318 FIS commander
 

After winning the award in 1975, the 318th recaptured the Hughes Achievement Trophy during General Kinnans command in 1984. The Hughes Trophy is the top award given for exceptional performance by a USAF fighter squadron

 
 
the Hughes tROPHY