David Deptula

David A. Deptula is the Dean of the Mitchell Institute of Aerospace Power Studies. He is a decorated military leader who transitioned from the U.S. Air Force in 2010 after more than 34 years of service. General Deptula was commissioned in 1974 as a distinguished graduate from The University of Virginia Air Force ROTC program. He is a world-recognized leader and pioneer in conceptualizing, planning, and executing security operations from humanitarian relief to major combat. He has accomplished historic achievements and several "firsts" in the command of joint forces, planning and execution of aerospace power, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), and improved international relationships. He was a principal author of the seminal Air Force White Paper "Global Reach—Global Power,",  and is considered the "father" of "effects-based operations" for his application of that concept in building the attack plans for operation Desert Storm. "Deptula fostered the most significant change in the conduct of aerial warfare since Billy Mitchell...Deptula’s framework influenced the successful air campaigns in Operations Allied Force, Iraqi Freedom, and Enduring Freedom. Today, joint targeting cells and Air Force doctrine reflect Deptula's theory of airpower and the changing nature of warfare." He has taken part in operations, planning, and joint warfighting at unit, major command, service headquarters and combatant command levels, and also served on two congressional commissions outlining America’s future defense posture.

Leadership in Combat and Contingency Operations
Deptula has significant experience in combat and leadership in several major joint contingency operations. He was the principal attack planner for the Desert Storm coalition air campaign in 1991. He has twice been a Combined/Joint Task Force Commander – in 1998/1999 for Operation Northern Watch where he flew 82 combat missions as a general officer, and for Operation Deep Freeze in Antarctica. In 2001, he served as Director of the Combined Air Operations Center for Operation Enduring Freedom where he orchestrated air operations over Afghanistan in response to the terrorist attacks of 9/11/2001. In 2005, he was the Joint Force Air Component Commander (JFACC) for Operation Unified Assistance, the South Asia tsunami relief effort, and in 2006 he was the standing JFACC for Pacific Command. He has piloted more than 3,000 flying hours (400 in combat) to include multiple fighter aircraft command assignments in the F-15. Early in his career he was an F-15 aerial demonstration pilot.

Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance, and Drone Leadership
Deptula was the first Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance at Air Force Headquarters, and was involved in shaping and managing military use of unmanned aerial vehicles (drones). Responsible for policy formulation, planning, and leadership of AF ISR and remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) —also known as drones—he initiated and built the Air Force’s first ISR Strategy, established the Air Force ISR Agency, and constructed an Air Force ISR flight plan that established processes to optimize ISR decisions to resource that strategy. He also created the first RPA/drone flight plan that together with his ISR strategy created an ISR enterprise designed to transition the military from an era of industrial age warfare to the information age.

Military Career Summary
He retired from service on October 1, 2010 and founded a consulting firm, the Deptula Group, LLC. In 2010, General Deptula received the Air Force Association’s highest honor in the field of national security. He was only the fourth 3-star General to receive the award in its 65-year history. Other recipients of the award include Ronald Reagan, Colin Powell, and Barry Goldwater. In "America's Airman: David Deptula and the Airpower Moment," the author explores the air-minded ideas of General Deptula and his legacy as an iconic Airman. He "uses Deptula's career to outline his trajectory and understanding of airpower ideas in the context of the modern global environment. Based on foundational principles, his air-minded thinking today continues to embody the radical paradigm shifting so necessary to ensure continued national defense. The lasting effect of Deptula is a further evolution of air-minded thinking in an effort to maximize effects to achieve policy ends at minimum cost." "As he had since at least 1990, in his final three assignments, Deptula shaped, influenced, and advocated for change inside and outside the Air Force." Summing up his military career, an editorial in Air Force Times on August 2, 2010 concluded, "For his honesty and public service the U.S. owes him an enormous debt of gratitude."

Post-Military Career
Deptula’s post-military retirement life has been devoted to research, education, and advocacy on matters relating to national security. He has served as a senior scholar at the U.S. Air Force Academy Center for Character and Leadership Development; on the Defense Science Board task force on innovation for the future; participated in the crafting of "A New Defense Strategy for a New Era" as a member of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation Defense Advisory Committee; as a senior adviser to the Gemunder Center for Defense & Strategy and as a member of its Iran Task Force; and as an adviser to the NATO Joint Air Power Competence Center future vector project. He has been a speaker at events hosted by the USAF; the Air Force Association; the Council On Foreign Relations; the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Affairs; the Center for a New American Security; the Center for Strategic and International Studies; Congressional Staff; the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs; The National Security Roundtable; the Bipartisan Policy Center, the U.S. Peace Institute, several universities, and multiple international security events.

In addition to his primary occupation as the Dean of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, Deptula is a board member at a variety of institutions; an independent consultant; and is a sought-after commentator around the world as a thought leader on military issues; strategy; and ISR. He has appeared in hundreds of articles, national and international television and radio, and authored numerous articles in public, and professional magazines, journals, and books ("Deptula wrote more than nearly any other senior Airman of his generation, both under his name and at the behest of those senior to him").

In late 2014, the Deptula Group, LLC was barred from doing business with the United States Government, for allegedly not following USAF General Counsel (AFGC) advice in 2011. The restriction applies through 1 February 2016. The same USAF General Counsel was named in a Department of Defense (DOD) Inspector General report as violating the DOD Joint Ethics Regulations while in the job. Deptula has denied any wrongdoing, stating that the Air Force General Counsel's decision on the matter contained inaccuracies, and selectively excluded important facts. He is appealing the decision and requesting removal of the debarment ruling. Three former secretaries of the Air Force, three former Air Force Chiefs of Staff, and 8 additional respected senior leaders have provided testimony in support of Deptula’s position.

Defense News magazine named Deptula one of the 100 most influential people in U.S. defense for 2014. On April 2, 2015 he was honored with a special award for his outstanding contributions to airpower at an international conference on air and space power in Istanbul, Turkey.

Publications

 * "How to Defeat the Islamic State," The Washington Post, 5 Jun 2015
 * "Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance in the Information Age," Leading Edge—Airpower in Theory & Practice, 9 Jun 2015
 * "Airmindedness," Leading Edge—Airpower in Theory & Practice, 1 May 2015
 * "The Russians Have Us Over A Rocket," Wall Street Journal, 23 Oct 2014
 * "How To Defeat ISIL: It’s All About The Strategy," Breaking Defense, 5 Sep 2014
 * "A New Era for Command and Control of Aerospace Operations," Air & Space Power Journal, Jul-Aug 2014
 * "A Reinvigorated Beacon of Aerospace Advocacy," Wingman Magazine, May 2014
 * "Sending a Bunker-Buster Message to Iran," Wall Street Journal, 7 Apr 2014
 * "Toward A Balanced Combat Air Force," CSBA, Mar 2014
 * "Drones Best Weapons We've Got For Accuracy, Control, Oversight," AOL Defense, Mar 2013
 * "New Capabilities, New Constraints Call For New Concepts," AOL Defense, Jan 2013
 * "Missing From Our Two Wars: Clear Goals, Joint Forces," in AOL Defense, Oct 2012
 * "Afghan War Lessons: U.S. Must Make Strategic Choices As Budgets Shrink," AOL Defense, Oct 2011"Integration Nation," C4ISR Journal, Apr 2012
 * "ISR Will Lead the Fight by 2020," AOL Defense, Jun 2011
 * "The Future of Air Power," in Global Air Power, 2011
 * "Information-age Warfare Demands New Approaches to ISR," Armed Forces Journal International, Nov 2010
 * "Global Distributed ISR Operations: The Changing Face of Warfare," Joint Forces Quarterly 54, 2009
 * "A House Divided: The Indivisibility of ISR," Air & Space Power, Summer 2008
 * "Unmanned Aircraft Systems: Taking Strategy to Task," Joint Forces Quarterly 49, 2008
 * "Air and Space Power Lead Turning the Future," Orbis, Fall 2008
 * "Toward Restructuring National Security," Strategic Studies Quarterly Vol 1, No. 2, 2007
 * "Transforming Air and Space Power Organization in the Pacific," High Frontier Magazine, 2006
 * "Direct Attack: Enhancing Counterland Doctrine & Jnt Air-Ground Operations," Air & Space Power Journal, Winter 2003
 * "Transforming Joint Air-Ground Operations for 21st Century Battlespace," Field Artillery Mag, Jul-Aug 2003
 * "Embracing Change: US Air Force Transformation," Armed Forces Journal International, October 2001
 * "Effects-based Operations: Change in the Nature of War," Aerospace Education Foundation, 2001
 * "Air Exclusion Zones: Instruments of Security Policy in a New Era," RAAF Proceedings, 2000
 * "Parallel Warfare—What is it? Where did it come from? Why Is It Important?" Eagle in the Desert, 1996
 * "Firing for Effect: Change in the Nature of Warfare," AFA Defense and Airpower Series, 1995

Education

 * 1974 Bachelor of Science degree in astronomy, University of Virginia
 * 1976 Master of Science degree in systems engineering, University of Virginia
 * 1978 Squadron Officer School
 * 1981 U.S. Air Force Fighter Weapons School
 * 1983 Air Command and Staff College
 * 1988 Armed Forces Staff College, Norfolk, Va.
 * 1994 Master of Science degree in national security strategy, National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington D.C.

Assignments

 * February 1976 - January 1977, student, undergraduate pilot training, Vance AFB, Okla.
 * February 1977 - December 1977, student, F-15 upgrade training, Luke AFB, Ariz.
 * January 1978 - September 1979, F-15 flight lead, 7th Tactical Fighter Squadron, and wing training officer, 49th Tactical Fighter Wing, Holloman AFB, N.M.
 * September 1979 - January 1983, F-15 flight commander, weapons and tactics officer, mission commander, instructor pilot and Pacific Air Forces F-15 aerial demonstration pilot, 67th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Kadena Air Base, Japan
 * January 1983 - February 1984, staff officer, Air Staff Training Program, Weapons Systems Division, Office of the Secretary of the Air Force for Legislative Liaison, Washington, D.C.
 * February 1984 - April 1984, student, F-15 requalification training, Luke AFB, Ariz.
 * April 1984 - July 1987, Chief, Wing Weapons and Tactics Division, and instructor pilot, 325th Tactical Training Wing, Tyndall AFB, Fla.
 * July 1987 - January 1988, student, Armed Forces Staff College, Norfolk, Va.
 * January 1988 - September 1989, action officer, Directorate of Warfighting Concepts Development, Doctrine Division, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.
 * September 1989 - January 1992, policy and issues analyst, and Secretary of the Air Force Policy Group member, Office of the Secretary of the Air Force, Washington, D.C. (August 1990 - March 1991, principal offensive air campaign planner for the Director of Campaign Plans, Operation Desert Shield, and Director, Iraq Target Planning Group, Operation Desert Storm, Joint Force Air Component Command, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia)
 * February 1992 - March 1992, student, F-15 requalification training, Tyndall AFB, Fla.
 * March 1992 - July 1993, Chief of Wing Safety, and Team Chief and lead pilot for William Tell 1992, 33rd Fighter Wing; later, Deputy Commander, 33rd Logistics Group, Eglin AFB, Fla.
 * August 1993 - June 1994, student, National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C.
 * May 1994 - August 1995, team leader, Joint Warfighting and Deep Attack Issues, and professional staff member, Commission on Roles and Missions of the Armed Forces, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Washington, D.C.
 * August 1995 - September 1995, student, F-15 requalification training, Tyndall AFB, Fla.
 * October 1995 - December 1996, Commander, 33rd Operations Group, Eglin AFB, Fla.
 * January 1997 - January 1998, senior Air Force representative, National Defense Panel, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Washington, D.C.
 * February 1998 - March 1998, student, F-15 requalification training, Tyndall AFB, Fla.
 * April 1998 - October 1999, Commander, Combined Task Force for Operation Northern Watch, U.S. European Command, Incirlik Air Base, Turkey
 * October 1999 - February 2000, Director for Expeditionary Aerospace Force Implementation, Deputy Chief of Staff for Air and Space Operations, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.
 * February 2000 - December 2001, Director, Air Force Quadrennial Defense Review, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. (September 2001 - November 2001, Director, Combined Air Operations Center, Operation Enduring Freedom)
 * December 2001 - October 2003, Director of Plans and Programs, Headquarters Air Combat Command, Langley AFB, Va.
 * November 2003 - August 2005, Director of Air and Space Operations, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Hickam AFB, Hawaii
 * September 2005 - July 2006, Commander of the General George C. Kenney Warfighting Headquarters (P), and Vice Commander, Pacific Air Forces, Hickam AFB, Hawaii
 * July 2006 - October 2010, Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.

Joint assignments

 * August 1990 - March 1991, principal air campaign planner, Operation Desert Shield, and Director, Iraq Target Planning Group, Operation Desert Storm, Joint Force Air Component Command, Saudi Arabia, as a lieutenant colonel
 * May 1994 - August 1995, team leader-Joint Warfighting Issues, and professional staff member, Commission on Roles and Missions of the Armed Forces, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Washington, D.C., as a colonel
 * January 1997 - January 1998, National Defense Panel staff member, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Washington, D.C., as a colonel
 * April 1998 - October 1999, Commander, Combined/Joint Task Force Operation Northern Watch, U.S. European Command, Incirlik AB, Turkey, as a brigadier general
 * September 2001 - November 2001, Director, Combined Air Operations Center, Operation Enduring Freedom, Saudi Arabia, as a major general
 * December 2004 - February 2005, Joint Force Air Component Commander, Operation Unified Assistance (South Asia tsunami relief effort), Hickam AFB, Hawaii, as a major general
 * October 2005 - July 2006, Commander, Joint Task Force Operation Deep Freeze, and standing Joint Force Air Component Commander for Pacific Command, Hickam AFB, Hawaii, as a lieutenant general

Flight information

 * Rating: Command pilot
 * Flight hours: More than 3,000, including more than 400 combat hours
 * Aircraft flown: T-37, T-38 and F-15A/B/C/D