List of 1st Marine Aircraft Wing commanders

The 1st Marine Aircraft Wing is an aviation unit of the United States Marine Corps that serves as the Aviation Combat Element of the III Marine Expeditionary Force. The wing is headquartered at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma on the island of Okinawa, Japan. Activated in 1941, the wing has seen heavy combat operations during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.

1st Marine Aircraft Wing Logo

Commanding generals

#	Picture	Name	Rank	Start	End	Notability	Ref
1		WoodsLouis E. Woods	O-04 Lieutenant colonel	7 July 1941	20 August 1941	Veteran Guadalcanal Campaign, veteran Okinawa Campaign, Navy Distinguished Service Medal, Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire; commanding general, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing	[1][2]
2		GeigerRoy S. Geiger	O-04 Colonel	20 August 1941	21 April 1943	Navy Cross; commanding general Fleet Marine Force, Pacific	[1][3]
3		MitchellRalph J. Mitchell	O-04 Major general	21 April 1943	1 February 1944	Navy and Army Distinguished Service Medals; director of Marine Corps Aviation 1939-1943; Distinguished Flying Cross from Nicaraguan Campaign.	[1]
4		MooreJames T. Moore	O-04 Major general	1 February 1944	15 June 1944	Army Distinguished Service Medals, Legion of Merit; commanded also 4th Marine Aircraft Wing and 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing	[1]
5		MitchellRalph J. Mitchell	O-04 Major general	15 June 1944	6 June 1945	Navy and Army Distinguished Service Medals; director of Marine Corps Aviation 1939-1943; Distinguished Flying Cross from Nicaraguan Campaign.	[1]
6		MajorHarold C. Major (Acting)	O-04 Colonel	6 June 1945	11 June 1945	Legion of Merit	[1]
7		MerrittLewie G. Merritt	O-04 Brigadier general	11 June 1945	11 August 1945	World War I veteran; director, South Carolina Legislative Council; Citadel alumnus; Merritt Field as MCAS Beaufort is named after him	[1][4][5]
8		LarkinClaude A. Larkin	O-04 Major general	11 August 1945	31 October 1945	Lieutenant general; MAG-21 Commanding Officer at Ewa Field during Pearl Harbor attack	[1][2][6][7]
9		WoodsLouis E. Woods	O-04 Major general	31 October 1945	July 1946	Veteran Guadalcanal Campaign, veteran Okinawa Campaign, Navy Distinguished Service Medal, Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire; commanding general, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing	[2][8]
10		SandersonLawson H. M. Sanderson	O-04 Brigadier general	July 1946	June 1947	Aviation pioneer, veteran Guadalcanal Campaign, as commanding officer of the 4th Marine Aircraft Wing, Sanderson accepted the Japanese surrender of Wake Island in 1945.
11		McKittrickWilliam L. McKittrick	O-04 Brigadier general	June 1947	September 1947	Veteran Bougainville Campaign and Battle of Saipan; two awards of Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal; commanding general, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing	[9]
12		WoodsLouis E. Woods	O-04 Major general	September 1947	July 1949	Veteran Guadalcanal Campaign, veteran Okinawa Campaign, Navy Distinguished Service Medal, Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire; commanding general, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing	[2][8]
13		HarrisField Harris	O-04 Major general	July 1949	29 May 1951	Graduate U.S. Naval Academy; Lieutenant general; Navy and Army Distinguished Service Medals
14		SchiltThomas J. Cushman (Acting)	O-04 Brigadier general	29 May 1951	27 July 1951	Lieutenant general; commanding general, 4th Marine Base Defense Air Wing (World War II) and 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing	[10][11]
15		SchiltChristian F. Schilt	O-04 Major general	27 July 1951	12 April 1952	Medal of Honor; General; Veteran World War I, United States occupation of Haiti, United States occupation of Nicaragua, and World War II	[12][13]
16		JeromeClayton C. Jerome	O-04 Major general	12 April 1952	9 January 1953	Lieutenant general; commanding general, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing	[14][15]
17		MegeeVernon E. Megee	O-04 Major general	9 January 1953	7 December 1953	Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps; Veteran World War II and Korean War; commanding general Fleet Marine Force Pacific; Air Force Distinguished Service Medal	[16]
18		CooleyAlbert D. Cooley	O-04 Major general	8 December 1953	25 March 1954	Veteran World War II; commanding general 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing; Navy Cross, Bronze Star Medal and Air Medal	[17]
19		McCaulVerne J. McCaul	O-04 Major general	26 March 1954	24 August 1954	Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps; Veteran World War II and Korean War;	[18]
20		DawsonMarion L. Dawson	O-04 Major general	25 August 1954	24 September 1955	Veteran World War II and Korean War; Graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy;
21		JackSamuel S. Jack	O-04 Major general	25 September 1955	30 June 1956	Veteran Nicaraguan Campaign, World War II and Korean War; Graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy; Recipient of the Navy Cross
22		O'NeillDavid F. O'Neill	O-04 Brigadier general	1 July 1956	27 November 1956	Veteran of World War II and Korean War; Graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy; Recipient of the two Legion of Merit; Bronze Star Medal and three Air Medals	[19]
23		BinneyArthur F. Binney	O-04 Major general	27 November 1956	December 1957	Veteran World War II and Korean War; commanding general 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing; graduate U.S. Naval Academy in 1928;	[20]
24		HayesCharles H. Hayes	O-04 Brigadier general	December 1957	April 1959	Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps; Veteran World War II and Korean War; commanding general 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing; graduate U.S. Naval Academy in 1930;	[20]
25		RobertsCarson A. Roberts	O-04 Major general	April 1959	1 December 1959	Veteran World War II and Korean War; commanding general 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing; Distinguished Flying Cross; Lieutenant general	[21]
26		MangrumRichard C. Mangrum	O-04 Major general	1 December 1959	April 1960	Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps; Veteran World War II and Korean War; Navy Cross; commanding general 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing	[22]
27		KierAvery R. Kier	O-04 Brigadier general	April 1960	June 1961	Veteran World War II and Korean War; Navy Cross; commanding general 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing	[20]
28		CondonJohn P. Condon	O-04 Major general	June 1961	August 1962	Veteran World War II and Korean War; commanding general 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing; graduate U.S. Naval Academy in 1934;	[23]
29		LeekFrederick E. Leek	O-04 Brigadier general	June 1962	February 1963	Commanding general, 1st Marine Division June–July 1961; Assistance Division Commander, 1st Marine Division 1961-1962	[24]
30		TharinFrank C. Tharin	O-04 Major general	June 1963	June 1964	A veteran of Battle of Wake Island;Prisoner of War from December 1941 to September 1945; Navy Distinguished Service Medal; Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross; Legion of Merit; Purple Heart
31		FontanaPaul J. Fontana	O-04 Major general	June 1964	24 May 1965	Flying ace with 5 aerial victories; Navy Cross; Distinguished Flying Cross	[25][26]
32		McCutcheonKeith B. McCutcheon	O-04 Brigadier general	24 May 1965	16 May 1966	General; Distinguished Flying Cross; Army Silver Star Medal; Commanding Officer Marine Helicopter Squadron One (HMX-1); commanding general, III Marine Amphibious Force; McCutcheon Field at MCAS New River, North Carolina is named in his honor.	[27][28]
33		RobershawLouis Robertshaw	O-04 Major general	16 May 1966	June 1967	Graduate U.S. Naval Academy; captain of the 1935 Naval Academy football team; Inspector General of the Marine Corps	[29]
34		AndersonNorman J. Anderson	O-04 Major general	June 1967	21 June 1968	Navy Distinguished Service Medal; Distinguished Flying Cross with three gold stars; Air Medal with two silver stars; graduate UCLA	[30]
35		QuilterCharles J. Quilter	O-04 Major general	21 June 1968	7 July 1969		[31]
36		ThrashWilliam G. Thrash	O-04 Major general	7 July 1969	2 July 1970	Veteran World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War; Prisoner of War from May 1952 to September 1953; Navy Distinguished Service Medal with one gold star; Distinguished Flying Cross	[32]
37		ArmstrongAlan J. Armstrong	O-04 Major general	2 July 1970	April 1971	Navy Distinguished Service Medal; Distinguished Flying Cross with gold star	[33]
38		ConleyRobert F. Conley (Acting)	O-04 Brigadier general	April 1971	June 1971	Legion of Merit w/ 2 gold stars; Distinguished Flying Cross w/ 3 gold stars; Director of Information
39		OwensRobert G. Owens Jr.	O-04 Major general	June 1971	1 April 1972	Flying ace with 7 victories; Navy Cross; Distinguished Flying Cross w/ 4 gold stars; commanding general, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing	[34]
40		OwensLeslie E. Brown	O-04 Major general	April 1972	1 April 1973	Veteran World War II; Korean War, and Vietnam War; Silver Star with gold star; Legion of Merit with Combat "V" and 2 gold stars; Distinguished Flying Cross; Bronze Star Medal with Combat "V"; Purple Heart with 2 gold stars	[35]
41		LangFrank C. Lang	O-04 Major general	April 1973	May 1974	Veteran World War II; Korean War, and Vietnam War; Legion of Merit with Combat "V" and 2 gold stars; Distinguished Flying Cross with 7 stars	[36]
42		ArmstrongVictor A. Armstrong	O-04 Major general	May 1974	January 1975	Major general; Veteran World War II; Korean War, and Vietnam War; Legion of Merit with Combat "V" and 2 gold stars; Distinguished Flying Cross with gold star	[37]
43		GourleyNorman W. Gourley	O-04 Major general	January 1975	6 January 1976	Major general; Veteran World War II; Korean War, and Vietnam War; Navy Distinguished Service Medal; Legion of Merit with Combat "V" and gold stars Distinguished Flying Cross with three gold stars
44		WhiteWilliam J. White (Acting)	O-04 Brigadier general	6 January 1976	23 February 1976	Veteran Korean War, and Vietnam War; Legion of Merit with Combat "V"; Distinguished Flying Cross	[38]
45		NewNoah C. New	O-04 Major general	1976	10 February 1978	Veteran Vietnam War; Legion of Merit with Combat "V"; Distinguished Flying Cross	[39]
46		DavisJohn K. Davis	O-04 Major general	15 February 1978	June 1979	General; Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps; Navy Distinguished Service Medal; Distinguished Flying Cross; commanding general 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing	[40]
47		MaloneyWilliam R. Maloney	O-04 Major general	June 1979	2 June 1980	Lieutenant general; Silver Star; Navy Distinguished Service Medal; Distinguished Flying Cross; commanding general 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing; commanding general 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing	[41]
48		FitchWilliam H. Fitch	O-04 Major general	2 June 1980	2 June 1982	Lieutenant general; Silver Star Medal	[42]
49		WentJoseph J. Went	O-04 Major general	2 June 1982	6 May 1983	Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps; General; Veteran Vietnam War	[43]
50		PetersenFrank E. Petersen Jr.	O-04 Major general	6 May 1983	1985	Lieutenant general; Distinguished Flying Cross; Gray Eagle Award; Man of the Year, NAACP, 1979.	[44]
51		PitmanCharles H. Pitman	O-04 Major general	12 June 1985	9 September 1987	Lieutenant general; Silver Star Medal	[45]
52		PlastererRoss S. Plasterer	O-04 Major general	9 September 1987	September 1989	Veteran Vietnam War; Legion of Merit; Distinguished Flying Cross	[46]
53		WillsDuane A. Wills	O-04 Brigadier general	9 September 1989	August 1990	Lieutenant general; Veteran Vietnam War; Distinguished Flying Cross; lettered in football at UCLA;	[47]
54		EhlertNorman E. Ehlert	O-04 Major general	6 August 1990	January 1991	Lieutenant general; commanding general, III Marine Expeditionary Force; Defense Distinguished Service Medal; Navy Distinguished Service Medal; Distinguished Flying Cross	[48]
55		BladesArthur C. Blades	O-04 Brigadier general	July 1991	June 1992	Silver Star; Distinguished Flying Cross	[49][50]
56		ForneyWilliam A. Forney	O-04 Brigadier general	June 1992	24 June 1994	Veteran Vietnam War; Legion of Merit	[51][52]
57		KaramarkovichGeorge M. Karamarkovich	O-04 Brigadier general	24 June 1994	May 1996	Veteran Vietnam War; Defense Superior Service Medal	[53]
58		KnutsonBruce B. Knutson, Jr.	O-04 Major general	May 1996	April 1998	Lieutenant general	[54]
59		AndersonJoseph T. Anderson	O-04 Major general	April 1998	2000	Veteran Vietnam War; graduate U.S. Naval Academy; Deputy Director, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum	[55][56]
60		CartwrightJames E. Cartwright	O-04 Major general	2000	5 August 2002	General; Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; commander, U.S. Strategic Command	[57]
61		GoodmanJohn F. Goodman	O-04 Major general	5 August 2002	3 June 2004	Lieutenant general; Defense Distinguished Service Medal; Soldiers Medal; Veteran Vietnam War; commander, United States Marine Corps Forces Pacific; director, Center for Excellence in Disaster Management and Humanitarian Assistance; former NFL quarterback	[58]
62		ThiessenDuane D. Thiessen	O-04 Major general	3 June 2004	10 June 2005		[59]
63		TrautmanGeorge J. Trautman, III	O-04 Major general	10 June 2005	8 June 2007		[60]
64		SchmidleRobert E. Schmidle, Jr.	O-04 Brigadier general	8 June 2007	28 July 2008		[61]
65		FoxRaymond C. Fox	O-04 Brigadier general	28 July 2008	28 June 2010		[62]
66		BeydlerWilliam D. Beydler	O-04 Brigadier general	28 June 2010	22 June 2012		[63]
67		OwensChristopher S. Owens	O-04 Brigadier general	22 June 2012	9 July 2013		[64]
68		RudderSteven R. Rudder	O-04 Brigadier general	9 July 2013	30 July 2015		[65]
69		SanbornRussell A. Sanborn	O-05 Major general	30 July 2015	29 June 2017		[66]
70		WeidleyThomas D. Weidley	O-04 Brigadier general	29 June 2017	25 June 2019	Commanding during the loss of 6 Marines in a mid-air collision between an F/A-18D Hornet and a KC-130J Hercules. Formally rebuked after allowing the investigative officer Colonel Samuel Schoolfield to run an unprofessional JAGMAN investigation into the crash.[67][68][69]	[70]
71		McPhillipsChristopher A. McPhillips	O-04 Brigadier general	25 June 2019	11 June 2021		[71]
72		CavanaughBrian W. Cavanaugh	O-04 Major general	11 June 2021	12 August 2022		[72]
73		AustinEric E. Austin	O-04 Major general	12 August 2022	12 July 2024
74		AnnibaleMarcus B. Annibale	O-04 Major general	12 July 2024	Incumbent		[73]

See also

• List of Historically Important U.S. Marines
• List of United States Marine Corps aircraft wings
• List of active United States Marine Corps aircraft squadrons
• List of 1st Marine Division Commanders
• List of 2nd Marine Division Commanders
• List of 3rd Marine Division Commanders