Maj. Gen. Mark T. Matthews is Director, Strategy, Plans and Assessments, U.S. Forces-Iraq, U.S. Central Command, Baghdad, Iraq.
General Matthews entered the Air Force in 1977 with a commission from the U.S. Air Force Academy, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering sciences as an honor graduate. A distinguished graduate of the USAF F-15 Fighter Weapons School, General Matthews was a member of the initial cadre to stand-up F-15s in Alaska. He has commanded the 435th Fighter Squadron, Holloman Air Force Base, N.M.; 607th Air Operations Group, Osan Air Base, South Korea; and 48th Fighter Wing, Royal Air Force Base Lakenheath, England. He has also served as Commandant of the Air Force Institute of Technology.
Following graduate school at Princeton, the general served on the Air Staff as a member of the Checkmate Division where he was one of the authors of Instant Thunder, the initial planning effort that evolved into the Desert Storm air campaign against Iraq. He was also Deputy Director for Operational Plans and Joint Matters, Deputy Chief of Staff for Air and Space Operations. While on the Joint Staff, General Matthews was assigned as the Assistant Deputy Director for Global Operations and its acting Director during Operation Enduring Freedom. Prior to his current assignment, he was Director of Plans and Programs, and later, Director of Requirements, Headquarters Air Combat Command, Langley AFB, Va.
EDUCATION
1977 Bachelor of Science degree in engineering sciences, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colo.
1982 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
1987 Master of Science in Engineering degree for operations research, Princeton University, Princeton, N.J.
1987 Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
1997 Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2001 Seminar XXI - Foreign Political and International Relations, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
2006 Combined Force Air Component Commander Course, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2007 Joint Flag Officer's Warfighting Course, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2007 Executive Leadership Seminar, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
ASSIGNMENTS
1. September 1977 - August 1978, student, undergraduate pilot training, Vance AFB, Okla.
2. January 1979 - July 1982, F-15A/C aircraft commander, 94th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Langley AFB, Va.
3. July 1982 - January 1983, F-15A instructor pilot, 43rd TFS, Elmendorf AFB, Alaska
4. January 1983 - June 1983, F-15A student, USAF Fighter Weapons School, Nellis AFB, Nev.
5. June 1983 - August 1984, Chief, F-15A Weapons and Tactics, 43rd TFS, Elmendorf AFB, Alaska
6. September 1984 - August 1985, Chief, F-15A Weapons and Tactics, 21st Tactical Fighter Wing, Elmendorf AFB, Alaska
7. September 1985 - January 1987, graduate student, Princeton University, Princeton, N.J.
8. February 1987 - October 1987, plans and programs research systems analyst, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.
9. November 1987 - April 1992, air-to-air capabilities and war strategies analyst, Checkmate Division, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.
10. April 1992 - August 1993, AT-38B instructor, 435th Fighter Squadron, later, Chief of Safety, 49th Fighter Wing, Holloman AFB, N.M.
11. August 1993 - June 1996, operations officer, later, Commander, 435th Fighter Squadron, Holloman AFB, N.M.
12. July 1996 - May 1997, student, Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
13. June 1997 - June 1999, Deputy Commander, later, Commander, 607th Air Operations Group, Osan Air Base, South Korea
14. June 1999 - May 2002, Assistant Deputy Director for Global Operations, Joint Staff, the Pentagon, Washington, D.C.
15. June 2002 - July 2003, Deputy Director for Operational Plans and Joint Matters, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.
16. August 2003 - June 2005, Commander, 48th Fighter Wing, RAF Lakenheath, England
17. July 2005 - August 2006, Commandant, Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio
18. August 2006 - October 2007, Director of Plans and Programs, Headquarters Air Combat Command, Langley AFB, Va.
19. October 2007 - June 2009, Director of Requirements, Headquarters Air Combat Command, Langley AFB, Va.
20. June 2009 - present, Director, Strategy, Plans and Assessments, U.S. Forces-Iraq, U.S. Central Command, Baghdad, Iraq
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. June 1999 - May 2002, Assistant Deputy Director for Global Operations, Joint Staff, the Pentagon, Washington D.C., as a colonel
2. June 2009 - present, Director, Strategic Plans and Assessment, U.S. Forces-Iraq, U.S. Central Command, Baghdad, Iraq, as a major general
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: Command pilot
Flight hours: 2,300 hours
Aircraft flown: T-37, T-38, F-15A/C, AT-38B, F-16C and F-15E
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Distinguished Service Medal
Defense Superior Service Medal
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal
Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters
Air Force Commendation Medal
Combat Readiness Medal with oak leaf cluster
National Defense Service Medal with bronze star
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
Iraq Campaign Medal with bronze star
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
Korea Defense Service Medal
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant June 1, 1977
First Lieutenant June 1, 1979
Captain June 1, 1981
Major Feb. 1, 1988
Lieutenant Colonel April 1, 1992
Colonel Dec. 1, 1997
Brigadier General Oct. 1, 2003
Major General April 16, 2007
(Current as of December 2010)