Lieutenant General
David L. Vesely
In March of this 1997, General Vesely was promoted to Lieutenant General and moved to Washington, DC to assume his new duties as Assistant Vice Chief of Staff United States Air Force. Previously, General Vesely had been commander of the 14th Air Force since June of 1995. The organization, known as the historic “Flying Tigers,” is the Air Force’s only numbered space force, conducting military operations and supporting both global civil and commercial activities. The 14th supports warfighting worldwide with ballistic missile warning, command and control of Department of Defense and North Atlantic Treaty Organization satellites, spacelift generation and range operations, global space surveillance and warning, and ballistic missile test operations.
General Vesely entered the Air Force in March 1966 as a graduate of the Michigan Technological University Reserve Officer Training Corps program. He is a command pilot who has flown more than 4,200 flight hours in a variety of aircraft from the F-111A to EC-130s, UH-1Ds and T-29s. He is also a Vietnam veteran where he flew more than 200 combat hours while assigned to the 20th Special operations Squadron, Cam Ranh Bay.
He has commanded an Air Force squadron, an Air Force wing and a combined Army-Air Force Center. He has also held key positions at Headquarters U.S. Air Force, the staff of the Secretary of the Air Force and the Joint Staff.
General Vesely has a Master’s degree in business administration from Auburn University and graduated from both the Air Force Command and Staff College and the Air War College at Maxwell Air Force Base. He has been awarded the Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart, the Air Medal and the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm.General Vesely and his wife, Avis, have three children.
