William E . Thurman Lieutenant General William Earl Thurman ( born May 17 , 1931 ) is a retired United States Air Force Lieutenant General who was commander , Aeronautical Systems Division , Air Force Systems Command , Wright - Patterson Air Force Base , Ohio . Early life . Thurman was born in 1931 in Hodgenville , Kentucky . He attended secondary school in central Kentucky and graduated from Danville High School . He earned a bachelor of science degree from the United States Naval Academy in 1954 , a master of science degree in aeronautical engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology at Wright - Patterson Air Force Base in 1962 and a master of administration degree in management engineering from The George Washington University in 1971 . Thurman completed Squadron Officer School in 1959 , Army Command and General Staff College in 1965 , Industrial College of the Armed Forces in 1975 and the Stanford University executive program in 1977 . He also attended the University of Kentucky and Ohio State University . Military career . After graduating from the United States Naval Academy , Thurman was commissioned as a second lieutenant and entered active duty in June 1954 . He was trained as a pilot at Spence Air Base , Georgia and Laredo Air Force Base , Texas . He also received fighter gunnery training at Laughlin Air Force Base , Texas , and Luke Air Force Base , Arizona . He served as an RF - 84 pilot at Kadena Air Base , Okinawa , Japan from August 1956 to May 1958 . He completed 2 months of instructor training at Craig Air Force Base , Alabama in July 1958 and then was assigned to the 3576th Pilot Training Squadron at Vance Air Force Base , Oklahoma . In February 1961 he entered the Air Force Institute of Technology at Wright - Patterson Air Force Base . Upon graduation in October 1962 with a M . S . in Aeronautical Engineering , he was assigned as an aeronautical engineer in the Aerospace Research Laboratories , also at Wright - Patterson . General Thurman graduated from the Army Command and General Staff College in July 1965 and transferred to Ent Air Force Base , Colorado , as a staff officer at Air Defense Command headquarters . Thurman served in Southeast Asia from November 1966 to October 1967 , initially as an F - 105 fighter pilot and flight commander with the 469th Tactical Fighter Group at Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base , Thailand . He became an operations staff officer at 7th Air Force headquarters , Tan Son Nhut Air Base , Republic of Vietnam . After returning to the United States in 1967 , Thurman was assigned to Headquarters U . S . Air Force , Washington , D . C . , a where he worked until August 1971 . His was first assigned as a foreign development officer in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Research and Development . In October 1969 he was named aerospace assistant to the National Aeronautics and Space Council , Executive Office of the President . He was assigned to the Aeronautical Systems Division , Wright - Patterson Air Force Base , in August 1971 as assistant director and a charter member of the Prototype Program Office . He was named deputy for prototypes in June 1973 , deputy for air combat fighter in May 1974 , deputy for F - 16 in January 1975 and deputy for engineering in May 1976 . In May 1978 General Thurman was assigned to the Electronic Systems Division at Hanscom Air Force Base , Massachusetts , as deputy for control and communications systems . He then was named commandant of the Defense Systems Management College at Fort Belvoir , Virginia , in November 1979 . After the B - 1 program was reinstituted , General Thurman became Aeronautical Systems Division ' s deputy for the B - 1B in November 1981 , again at Wright - Patterson Air Force Base . In May 1985 he moved to Andrews Air Force Base , Md . , as vice commander of Air Force Systems Command . He assumed his present command in July 1986 . General Thurman is a command pilot with more than 3 , 800 flying hours and 56 combat missions . His military decorations and awards include the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal , Defense Superior Service Medal , Legion of Merit with two oak leaf clusters , Distinguished Flying Cross with oak leaf cluster , Bronze Star Medal , Purple Heart , Air Medal with four oak leaf clusters and Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with oak leaf cluster . He received the Air Force Association ' s Meritorious Award for Program Management in 1976 and Distinguished Award for Management in 1985 . He was promoted to Lieutenant General June 1 , 1985 , with same date of rank . He retired August 1 , 1988 . Personal life . Thurman was inducted into the Aviation Museum of Kentucky ' s Kentucky Aviation Hall of Fame in 2002 . In his brief biography on the Hall of Fame ' s website , Thurman was described as " A command pilot with over 4 , 000 hours , he has flown nearly every aircraft in the current Air Force inventory . " Thurman is married to Joan ( née Hellerman ) , and resides in Pinehurst , North Carolina .