Major General West

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**W. O. West** was a Major General in the United States Air Force and the commander of Project Giza, also known as the Stargate Project. West was an Air Force pilot, having served in the Vietnam War and Gulf War, before assuming command of Project Giza, where he oversaw the 1996 reactivation of the Stargate and the Abydos Mission, which resulted in the start of the Tau'ri-Goa'uld War. In 1997, he retired and was succeeded by Major General George S. Hammond, who would reorganize Project Giza into Stargate Command.

## Biography

### Background information

Major General West commissioned as an Air Force officer and a pilot between 1964 and 1968 and served in the Vietnam War and Gulf War. West had prior experience with Colonel Jack O'Neill, who had gained his respect for his judgement and military expertise. Prior to 1996, West became the commander of Project Giza, also known as the Stargate Program, overseeing Dr. Catherine Langford's experiments with the Stargate. Template:Cite

### 1996

In 1996, he recalled Colonel Jack O'Neill to active duty to lead Project Giza's military component, which included the possibility of a one-way reconnaissance mission. After Dr. Daniel Jackson deciphered the Stargate's symbols, West authorized a test of the Gate, which succeeded in connecting to Abydos. He then authorized the Abydos Mission which was led by O'Neill's Abydos team, with the directive to perform reconnaissance and identify any threats to Earth. If any threats were identified, O'Neill was to detonate a Mark III nuclear warhead and destroy the Abydos Stargate. The mission resulted in the first battle of the Tau'ri-Goa'uld War and the death of the Goa'uld Supreme System Lord Ra. Template:Cite

Following the return of the Abydos team, the Earth's Stargate was shuttered and Project Giza was inactivated. In 1997, West retired from the Air Force as a Major General and was succeeded by Major General George S. Hammond, who would reorganize Project Giza into Stargate Command. Template:Cite

### Other equipment

* **Service Dress Uniform**: *To be added*

## Awards and decorations

* Senior Pilot Badge
* Air Force Distinguished Service Medal
* Meritorious Service Medal
* Air Force Commendation Medal
* Air Force Achievement Medal
* Air Force Organizational Excellence Award
* National Defense Service Medal
* Vietnam Service Medal
* Southwest Asia Service Medal (two service stars)
* Air Force Overseas Long Tour
* Air Force Longevity Service Award (one silver and one bronze oakleaf cluster)
* Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon
* Air Force Training Ribbon
* Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal

## Trivia

* The book describes him as a "stern soldier about fifty years old" (putting his birthday around 1940) and states the following:

> Respected and feared by all who served under him, West was famous for three things: for always making the right decisions under pressure, for erupting into superhuman fits of rage when his orders were not executed exactly as he wished, and for being the best damn poker player in any branch of the armed forces.
>
> Stargate novelization p. 56, Stargate (novel)

* Leon Rippy, who played General West, is a character actor who appears in many movies by Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich. Rippy would later go on to appear in the TV series, "Leverage" alongside actor, Timothy Hutton.

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