Donald Joseph Hoffman

General, U.S. Air Force

Donald Joseph Hoffman was born on 24 April 1952.

Hoffman is a 1974 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy. He was commissioned in 1974 and served in various operational and staff assignments in Europe, the Middle East and United States. He has commanded at the flight, squadron, group and wing levels, and has served on the staffs of U.S. Central Command, U.S. European Command, Air Education and Training Command, Air Combat Command and Headquarters U.S. Air Force. He served as Military Deputy, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition from August 2005 to 20 November 2008.

On 21 November 2008, Hoffman was promoted to the four-star rank of General and became the 7th (and current) Commander, Air Force Materiel Command. As Air Force Material Command's commander, he leads the command's 74,000 Air Force and civilian personnel, manage $59 billion annually in research, development, test and evaluation. He also oversees the acquisition management services and logistics support which is required to develop, procure and sustain Air Force weapon systems. Hoffman assumed his command.

General Hoffman is a Command Pilot with over 3,400 flying hours in F-16 Fighting Falcon, T-37 Tweet, T-38 Talon and C-12 Huron aircraft.

Education

1974 Distinguished graduate, Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, CO

1975 Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA

1978 Distinguished graduate, Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, AL

1986 Distinguished graduate, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, AL

1992 National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, DC

1998 National Security Management Course, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY

Assignments

June 1974 - June 1975, graduate student, Air Force Institute of Technology, University of California, Berkeley, CA.

June 1975 - January 1977, student, undergraduate pilot training, Williams AFB, AZ, and pilot instructor training, Randolph AFB, TX.

January 1977 - June 1981, T-37 Instructor, Check Pilot and Squadron Executive Officer, 89th Flying Training Squadron, later, Life Support Officer, 80th Flying Training Wing, Sheppard AFB, TX.

June 1981 - April 1982, student, F-16 upgrade training, MacDill AFB, FL.

April 1982 - July 1985, F-16 pilot, Flight Lead, Instructor Pilot, Flight Commander and Assistant Operations Officer, 10th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Hahn Air Base, West Germany.

August 1985 - June 1986, student, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, AL.

June 1986 - April 1989, Air Staff Officer and Executive Officer, Directorate of Avionics and Electronic Combat, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, DC.

April 1989 - June 1991, T-37 Instructor and Squadron Commander, 98th Flying Training Squadron, Williams AFB, AZ.

July 1991 - June 1992, student, National War College, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington.

August 1992 - July 1994, Chief, Aviation Section, Office of Military Cooperation, U.S. Central Command, Cairo, Egypt.

July 1994 - October 1995, Executive Officer to the Commander, Headquarters Air Education and Training Command, Randolph AFB, TX.

October 1995 - February 1997, Commander, 14th Operations Group, Columbus AFB, MS.

February 1997 - December 1998, Special Assistant to the Supreme Allied Commander Europe, Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe, Mons, Belgium.

December 1998 - March 2000, Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations, Headquarters Allied Air Forces Northwestern Europe, NATO, Royal Air Force High Wycombe, England, and Deputy Commander for NATO affairs, Headquarters 3rd Air Force, RAF Mildenhall, England.

March 2000 - May 2001, Commander, 52nd Fighter Wing, Spangdahlem AB, Germany.

May 2001 - October 2002, Commander, 31st Fighter Wing and 31st Air Expeditionary Wing, Aviano AB, Italy.

October 2002 - August 2005, Director of Requirements, Headquarters Air Combat Command, Langley AFB, VA.

August 2005 - November 2008, Military Deputy, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, the Pentagon, Washington.

November 2008 - present, Commander, Air Force Materiel Command, Wright-Patterson AFB, OH.

Promotion Dates

Second Lieutenant - 5 June 1974

First Lieutenant - 5 June 1976

Captain - 5 June 1978

Major - 1 August 1985

Lieutenant Colonel - 1 May 1989

Colonel - 1 January 1993

Brigadier General - 1 February 2000

Major General - 1 June 2003

Lieutenant General - 1 November 2005

General - 21 November 2008

Medals and Awards

Air Force Distinguished Service Medal (2 Awards)
Defense Superior Service Medal
Legion of Merit (2 Awards)
Defense Superior Service Medal
Meritorious Service Medal (4 Awards)

Badges

Command Pilot Badge
Master Parachutist Badge
Headquarters, U.S. Air Force Identification Badge