Brig. Gen. Chad T. Manske is the 30th Commandant of the National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C. The mission of the National War College is to prepare future leaders of the armed forces, Department of State, foreign military officers and other civilian agencies for high-level policy command and staff responsibilities by conducting a senior-level course of study with emphasis on the formulation and implementation of national security strategy and policy. As the commandant, Brig. Gen. Manske is responsible for formulating academic policies, supervising curriculum planning, preparation and ensuring excellence in classroom teaching.
Prior to assuming his current position, Brig. Gen. Manske was the Deputy Commander, Canadian North American Aerospace Defense Region and Deputy Combined/Joint Force Air Component Commander for 1 Canadian Air Division, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
Brig. Gen. Manske was commissioned in 1989 following his graduation from Michigan State University and has commanded at the squadron, group and wing levels. Additionally, he has deployed in support of ongoing operations in Central and Southwest Asia as an Air Expeditionary Group Commander, the Deputy Director and Director of the U.S. Central Command’s Deployment and Distribution Operations Center and as an Air Expeditionary Wing Commander for operations Odyssey Dawn and Unified Protector.
EDUCATION
1989 Bachelor of Arts, Political Science-Pre Law, Michigan State University, East Lansing
1995 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.
1997 Master of Aeronautical Science, Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, Fla.
2001 Master of Military Operational Art and Science, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2001 Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence
2002 Master of Airpower Art and Science, School of Advanced Airpower Studies, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2008 National Defense Fellow, Harvard University, Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Cambridge, Mass.
2010 Enterprise Leadership Seminar, University of Virginia Darden School of Business, Charlottesville
2011 Joint and Combined Warfighting School, Norfolk, Va.
2012 Strategic Mindset Seminar, Washington, D.C.
2013 Harvard Kennedy School U.S.-Russia Security Program, The George Washington University Elliott School, Washington, D.C.
2014 National and International Security Leadership Seminar, Washington, D.C.
2015 Joint Force Air Component Commander Course, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2018 Continuous Improvement for Executives Program, Institute for Defense & Business, Cincinnati
2018 U.S./U.K. Rising Leader Forum, National Defense University, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C.
2019 Master of Science, National Security Strategy, National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C.
ASSIGNMENTS
1. April 1990 - April 1991, Student, Undergraduate Pilot Training, Columbus Air Force Base, Miss.
2. May 1991 - December 1991, Student, KC-135A and KC-135 R-Difference Training, Castle AFB, Calif.
3. January 1992 - December 1993, KC-135R Standards/Evaluation Pilot, 91st and 97th Air Refueling Squadrons, Malmstrom AFB, Mont.
4. January 1994 - October 1994, KC-10 Pilot and Executive Officer, 32nd Air Refueling Squadron, Barksdale AFB, La.
5. November 1994 - July 1998, KC-10 Instructor Pilot, Wing Executive Officer and Deputy Flight Commander, 32nd Air Refueling Squadron/305th Air Mobility Wing, McGuire AFB, N.J.
6. August 1998 - July 2000, C-17A Aircraft and Flight Commander, 17th Airlift Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C.
7. August 2000 - June 2001, Student, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
8. July 2001 - June 2002, Student, School of Advanced Airpower Studies, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
9. July 2002 - June 2004, Special Assistant to the Commander, U.S. Joint Forces Command and Supreme Allied Commander Transformation (NATO), Norfolk, Va.
10. June 2004 - July 2005, Commander, 7th Airlift Squadron, McChord AFB, Wash.
11. July 2005 - December 2005, Deputy Commander, 62nd Operations Group, McChord AFB, Wash. (October 2005, Commander, 385th Air Expeditionary Group, Incirlik Air Base, Turkey)
12. December 2005 - June 2007, Vice Commander, 436th Airlift Wing, Dover AFB, Del. (December 2006 - April 2007, Deputy Director, U.S. Central Command Deployment and Distribution Operations Center, Southwest Asia)
13. July 2007 - June 2008, National Defense Fellow, Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass.
14. July 2008 - August 2009, Chief, Strategy and Integration Division, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
15. Sep 2009 – June 2011, Commander, 100th Air Refueling Wing, RAF Mildenhall, England (March 2011, Commander, 406th Air Expeditionary Wing, Moron Air Base, Spain)
16. July 2011 – June 2012, Air Force Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations, New York
17. July 2012 – January 2015, Deputy Director for Operational Logistics, Logistics Directorate (J4), Joint Staff, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
18. January 2015 - June 2015, Director, U.S. CENTCOM Deployment and Distribution Operations Center, Southwest Asia
19. August 2015 – June 2017, Deputy Commander, Canadian North American Aerospace Defense Region, and Deputy Combined/Joint Forces Air Component Commander, 1 Canadian Air Division, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
20. July 2017 – present, 30th Commandant, National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C.
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. July 2002 - June 2004, Special Assistant to Commander, U.S. Joint Forces Command and Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, Norfolk, Va., as a lieutenant colonel
2. December 2006 - April 2007, Deputy Director, U.S. Central Command Deployment and Distribution Operations Center, Southwest Asia, as a colonel
3. July 2012 – January 2015, Deputy Director for Operational Logistics, Logistics Directorate, Joint Staff, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va., as a colonel
4. January 2015 - June 2015, Director, U.S. CENTCOM Deployment and Distribution Operations Center, Southwest Asia, as a colonel and brigadier general
5. August 2015 – June 2017, Deputy Commander, Canadian North American Aerospace Defense Region and Deputy Combined/Joint Forces Air Component Commander, 1 Canadian Air Division, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, as a brigadier general
6. July 2017 - July 2019, 30th Commandant, National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C., as a brigadier general
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: command pilot
Flight Hours: more than 3,800 (281 combat)
Aircraft Flown: T-6, MC-130H, C-5A/B, C-17A, KC-10A, KC-135A/R, F-15D, T-38 and T-37
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Distinguished Service Medal
Defense Superior Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
Legion of Merit
Defense Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters
Air Medal with oak leaf cluster
Aerial Achievement Medal with silver oak leaf cluster
Air Force Commendation Medal
Canadian Armed Forces Meritorious Service Medal
OTHER AWARDS
Air Mobility Command winner, 2004 Air Force Association Gill Robb Wilson Award
Air Mobility Command winner, 2004 Robert J. Collier Trophy
Air Mobility Command winner, 2006 Air Force Association Theodore Von Karman Award
Air Force Fellows 2008 Walker Series Award for the top Air Force Fellows research paper
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
“Looking Ahead at the Future of Airlift: A Capabilities-Based Approach to Designing the Next Generation Strategic Airlifter,” Air Force Journal of Logistics, Spring 2002
“Unmanned Airlift: A Viable Option for Meeting the Strategic Airlift Shortfall,” Air University Press, Sep 2004
“The Machinery of Government Needs a Tune-up: Lessons for the US National Security Council from the British Committee of Imperial Defence,” Air University Press, March 2009
“Transforming the National Security Culture: A Report of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Defense Leadership Project,” Harvard Kennedy School Center for Public Leadership, April 2009
“Joint Task Force Odyssey Dawn: A Model for Joint Experience, Training, and Education,” Joint Force Quarterly, January 2012
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant June 10, 1989
First Lieutenant Nov. 13, 1991
Captain Nov. 13, 1993
Major July 1, 1999
Lieutenant Colonel March 1, 2002
Colonel March 1, 2006
Brigadier General Jan. 29, 2015
(Current as of August 2019)