LIEUTENANT GENERAL GLENN F. SPEARS Lt. Gen. Glenn F. Spears is the Commander, 12th Air Force, Air Combat Command, and Commander, Air Forces Southern, U.S. Southern Command, Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz. Twelfth Air Force commands 10 combat wings and one RED HORSE squadron. These subordinate commands operate more than 520 combat aircraft with more than 40,500 uniformed and civilian Airmen. General Spears is also responsible for the operational readiness of 13 Twelfth Air Force-gained wings and other units of the Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard. These units include more than 220 aircraft and 23,800 Air Reserve Component Airmen. As the Air Component Commander of U.S. Southern Command, General Spears conducts security cooperation and provides air, space and cyberspace capabilities throughout the 31 nations of Latin America and the Caribbean. General Spears was commissioned upon graduation from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1978. His previous commands include a combined operations-maintenance bomb squadron, an operations group, an air refueling wing and an airlift wing. He also commanded the 100th Air Expeditionary Wing during Operation Allied Force, leading combat and combat support operations with more than 75 B-1, B-52, E-3, KC-135 and RC-135 aircraft, their crews and support personnel. Prior to his current assignment, General Spears served as the Deputy Commander, U.S. Southern Command, Miami, Fla. General Spears is a command pilot with more than 3,400 flying hours in 16 types of Air Force aircraft. EDUCATION 1978 Bachelor of Science degree, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colo. 1983 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Ala. 1984 Air Command and Staff College, by correspondence 1989 College of Naval Command and Staff, Naval War College, Newport, R.I. 1989 Master of Arts degree, Salve Regina College, Newport, R.I. 1989 Master of Science degree in national security and strategic studies, Naval War College, Newport, R.I. 1994 Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala. 2002 National Security Leadership Course, Syracuse University, N.Y. 2006 Seminar XXI, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Mass. ASSIGNMENTS 1. July 1978 - July 1979, student, undergraduate pilot training, Williams AFB, Ariz. 2. August 1979 - December 1979, student, KC-135 combat crew training, Castle AFB, Calif. 3. January 1980 - August 1983, KC-135 pilot, standardization and evaluation pilot, and aircraft commander, 22nd Air Refueling Squadron, March AFB, Calif. 4. September 1983 - August 1984, Air Staff Training Program, Directorate of Programs and Evaluation, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. 5. September 1984 - April 1985, student, B-52 combat crew training, Castle AFB, Calif. 6. May 1985 - July 1988, B-52 aircraft commander, instructor pilot, and Chief of Wing Scheduling and Mission Development, 644th Bomb Squadron and 410th Bomb Wing, K.I. Sawyer AFB, Mich. 7. August 1988 - June 1989, student, College of Naval Command and Staff, Newport, R.I. 8. June 1989 - March 1992, Chief of Bomber and Tanker Programs, Directorate of Programs and Evaluation, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. 9. April 1992 - June 1993, Commander, 596th Bomb Squadron, and Deputy Commander, 2nd Operations Group, Barksdale AFB, La. 10. July 1993 - June 1994, student, Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala. 11. July 1994 - June 1996, Chief, Operations Training and Lessons Learned Branch, and Chief, Command and Control Division, Headquarters U.S. European Command, Stuttgart, Germany 12. June 1996 - August 1996, student, B-1B pilot initial qualification training, Dyess AFB, Texas 13. August 1996 - July 1998, Commander, 28th Operations Group, Ellsworth AFB, S.D. 14. July 1998 - April 2000, Commander, 100th Air Refueling Wing, Royal Air Force Mildenhall, England 15. April 2000 - August 2001, executive officer to the Chief of Staff, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. 16. August 2001 - July 2003, Commander, 89th Airlift Wing, Andrews AFB, Md. 17. August 2003 - January 2005, Director of Plans and Programs, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Hickam AFB, Hawaii 18. February 2005 - June 2006, Director of Force Management Policy, Deputy Chief of Staff for Manpower and Personnel, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. 19. June 2006 - July 2009, Deputy Commander, U.S. Southern Command, Miami, Fla. 20. August 2009 - present, Commander, 12th Air Force, Air Combat Command, and Commander, Air Forces Southern, U.S. Southern Command, Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz. SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS 1. July 1994 - June 1996, Chief, Operations Training and Lessons Learned Branch, and Chief, Command and Control Division, Headquarters U.S. European Command, Stuttgart, Germany, as a lieutenant colonel 2. June 2006 - July 2009, Deputy Commander, U.S. Southern Command, Miami, Fla., as a lieutenant general FLIGHT INFORMATION Rating: Command pilot Flight hours: More than 3,400 Aircraft flown: B-1B, B-52D/G/H, C-9C, C-20B/C/H, C-21A, C-32A, C-37A, C-40B, EC-130H, KC-135A/Q/R/T, MC-130H, T-37B, T-38A, UH-1N, TU-2S and VC-25A MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS Defense Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal with oak leaf cluster Legion of Merit with three oak leaf clusters Bronze Star Medal Defense Meritorious Service Medal Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster Kosovo Campaign Medal Legion of Merit of Colombia Grand Cross of Aeronautical Merit of Chile OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS Distinguished graduate, Squadron Officer School Distinguished graduate, KC-135 combat crew training Distinguished graduate, B-52 combat crew training System of Cooperation Among the American Air Forces (SICOFAA) Legion of Merit EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION Second Lieutenant May 31, 1978 First Lieutenant May 31, 1980 Captain May 31, 1982 Major March 1, 1987 Lieutenant Colonel April 1, 1992 Colonel Oct. 1, 1996 Brigadier General Feb. 1, 2003 Major General March 1, 2006 Lieutenant General Nov. 2, 2007 (Current as of June 2011)