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    HomeAbout UsBiographiesDisplay      Official Portrait of USAF BGen Christopher Ireland taken at 17 Wing, Winnipeg on August 16, 2017.

Photo by Cpl Paul ShapkaEFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
                
                Second Lieutenant                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                September 25, 1991First Lieutenant                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 September 25, 1993Captain                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          September 25, 1995Major                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            July 01, 2002Lieutenant Colonel                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               March 01, 2006Colonel                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          October 01, 2010Brigadier General                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                July 03, 2017Engage OnFacebook PostsYour browser is incompatible with this widget.
                        
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        Official Portrait of USAF BGen Christopher Ireland taken at 17 Wing, Winnipeg on August 16, 2017.

Photo by Cpl Paul ShapkaBrigadier General CHRISTOPHER J. IRELANDBrig. Gen. Christopher J. Ireland is the Chief of Staff, Headquarters United States Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa, Ramstein Air Base, Germany. He develops and implements, policies, plans and programs on behalf of the Commander for the strategic planning and operational execution of forces in support of U.S. European Command and U.S. Africa Command. He concurrently directs and supervises the organization and administration of the Headquarters USAFE-AFAFRICA staff, consisting of more than 2,000 personnel, including 13 general officers and 48 colonels and guides the overall management and sustainment of forces across two areas of responsibility spanning 104 countries.
Brig. Gen. Ireland graduated from Virginia Tech, earning his commission through the ROTC program. Over the course of his career, he participated in multiple combat and contingency operations in Afghanistan, Haiti, Iraq, Kosovo and Colombia.
Prior to his current position, he was the Deputy Commander, Canadian North American Aerospace Defense Region, and Deputy Combined and Joint Force Air Component Commander for 1 Canadian Air Division, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.EDUCATION
1991 Bachelor of Arts, Political Science, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg
1997 Squadron Officer’s School, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.
2000 Masters of Science, Aviation Management, Embry-Riddle University, Daytona Beach, Fla.
2005 Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kan.
2006 School of Advanced Military Studies, Masters of Military Arts and Sciences, Fort Leavenworth, Kan.
2012 Naval War College, Masters of National Security and Strategic Studies, Naval War College, R.I.ASSIGNMENTS
1. February 1992–December 1992, Student, Undergraduate Navigator Training, Mather Air Force Base, Calif.
2. January 1993–April 1996, MC-130E Instructor Electronic Warfare Officer, 8th Special Operations Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla.
3. April 1996–November 1997, MC-130E Evaluator EWO, 19th Special Operations Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla.
4. December 1997–February 1999, Student, Pilot Training, Columbus AFB, Miss., and Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas
5. February 1999–September 2002, C-130H Pilot and ADO, 50th Airlift Squadron, Little Rock AFB, Ark.
6. October 2002–June 2004, MC-130H Aircraft CC and Flight CC, 7th Special Operations Squadron, RAF Mildenhall, United Kingdom
7. June 2004–June 2005, Student, Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kan.
8. June 2005–June 2006, Student, School of Advanced Military Studies, Fort Leavenworth, Kan.
9. July 2006–May 2009, Operations Officer and Commander, 15th Special Operations Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla.
10. May 2009–June 2011, Operations Officer, Pakistan-Afghanistan Coordination Cell, Joint Staff, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
11. July 2011–July 2012, Student, Naval War College, Naval Station Newport, R.I.
12. July 2012–April 2014, Commander, 352nd Special Operations Group, RAF Mildenhall, U.K.
13. April 2014–May 2015, Commander, 1st Expeditionary Special Operations Wing and Combined Joint Special Operations Air Comp, Afghanistan
14. July 2015–September 2016, Special Assistant to the Commander, U.S. Special Operations Command, MacDill AFB, Fla.
15. September 2016–August 2017, Deputy Director, U.S. Special Operations Command, Strategy, Plans and Policy, MacDill AFB, Fla.
16. August 2017–August 2019, Deputy Commander, Canadian North American Aerospace Defense Region, and Deputy Combined and Joint Forces Air Component Commander, 1 Canadian Air Division, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
17. August 2019–present, Chief of Staff, U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa, Ramstein Air Base, GermanyFLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: command pilot
Flight hours: more than 3,100
Aircraft flown: C-130E/H, MC-130E/HMAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Defense Superior Service Medal
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Defense Meritorious Service Medal
Meritorious Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
Air Medal
Air Force Commendation Medal with three oak leaf clusters
Air Force Achievement MedalEFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant Sept. 25, 1991
First Lieutenant Sept. 25, 1993
Captain Sept. 25, 1995
Major July 1, 2002
Lieutenant Colonel March 1, 2006
Colonel Oct. 1, 2010
Brigadier General July 3, 2017
(Current as of September 2019)
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