Charles W . Thomas ( general ) Major General ( Ret ) Charles William " Chuck " Thomas is a retired officer of the United States Army and defense industry executive . Early military service . A native of Natchitoches , Louisiana and a graduate of Northwestern State University receiving a Bachelor and Masters Degree in Zoology , Thomas entered the Army in October 1968 . Commissioned from Engineer Officer Candidate School on August 23 , 1969 as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Military Intelligence Branch , he served consecutive junior officer and command and staff tours with the 25th Infantry Division and the U . S . Army Security Agency in Southeast Asia and Hawaii . After completing the Military Intelligence Officer advanced course in 1974 , then Captain Thomas served as aide - de - camp to the Commanding General of the U . S Army Security Agency in Arlington , VA , followed by duty in the Army ' s Military Personnel Center as a Military Intelligence Officer Career Manager . Military career . Upon promotion in 1979 , Major Thomas served consecutively , as an Infantry Brigade Intelligence Officer ( S - 2 ) , 124th Military Intelligence Battalion Operations Officer and Executive Officer in the 24th Infantry Division ( Mechanized ) , Ft . Stewart , GA ; subsequently attending the Army ' s Command and General Staff College at Ft . Leavenworth , Kansas in 1982 - 83 . Returning to Ft . Stewart and the 24th Infantry Division in 1983 , he served as the Division Intelligence Officer ( G - 2 ) for 16 months . Selected for Battalion Command , then Lieutenant Colonel Thomas assumed command of the 302nd Military Intelligence Battalion in Frankfurt , Germany in January 1985 . In March 1987 , he assumed duties at the Army ' s Personnel Center in Alexandria , VA , as Chief of the Military Intelligence Branch . In 1988 - 89 he attended the National War College in Washington D . C . , and upon graduation , went immediately to Military Intelligence Brigade Command in Turkey where he commanded the U . S . Army Field Station , Sinop , Turkey . After his command tour , COL Thomas was assigned to the Joint Staff in the Pentagon where he began duty in the Joint Staff Operations ( J - 3 ) as the Deputy for Intelligence in the Special Technical Operations Division of the Current Operations Division ( J - 33 ) . Prior to the Gulf War , Colonel Thomas was ordered to Riyadh , Saudi Arabia and was appointed Director of the Central Command Joint Intelligence Center where he served for the duration of Operation Desert Storm . In April 1991 , he returned to his duties on the Joint Staff in the Pentagon . In October 1991 , Colonel Thomas was selected for Brigadier General and assigned as Vice Director for Current Intelligence , Joint Staff and Command Support , J - 2 / Defense Intelligence Agency . In June 1993 , he was reassigned as Deputy Chief of Staff , Intelligence , Headquarters , United States Army Europe and Seventh Army in Heidelberg Germany . On November 10 , 1994 , he assumed command of the United States Army Intelligence Center and Ft . Huachuca and was selected for Major General in July 1995 . Thomas ' s final assignment was as the chief of staff of the U . S . Army Training and Doctrine Command , Fort Monroe , Virginia from June 23 , 1998 until his retirement , September 30 , 2000 . Retirement . Upon retirement Thomas served as the Vice President of Defense and Intelligence Programs at Coleman Research in Washington D . C . until December 31 , 2001 . Currently he is Vice President for Army & Joint Operations , BAE Systems , Systems Engineering Solutions in Washington D . C . Thomas joined MEVATEC Corporation in January 2002 as the vice president of Washington operations . After MEVATEC ’ s acquisition by BAE Systems in April , 2003 he transferred to Huntsville as the BAE Systems Analytical Solutions ’ vice president for business development . In July 2004 he assumed duties as Vice President & General Manager of BAE Systems Analytical & Ordnance Solutions . A subsequent reorganization in the BAE Systems Customer Solutions Operating Group combined several lines of business into Systems Engineering Solutions and Thomas ’ responsibilities expanded their scope for Army & Joint Operations .