Nickname(s) "Kip" Name William Ward | Years of service 1971-2012 | |
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Born March 6, 1949 (age 75) ( 1949-03-06 ) Allegiance United States of America Awards Defense Distinguished Service Medal (3)Army Distinguished Service MedalDefense Superior Service Medal (3)Legion of Merit (4) Commands held United States Africa Command, United States European Command, 25th Infantry Division | ||
Battles/wars Operation Restore Hope | ||
Video message gen william e ward
William E. "Kip" Ward (born March 6, 1949), is a former United States Army four-star general who previously served as Commander, U.S. Africa Command from October 1, 2007 to March 8, 2011. Prior to that, Ward previously served as Deputy Commander, U.S. European Command. After he left U.S. Africa Command, Ward reverted to his permanent rank of major general and served as a special assistant to the Army’s vice chief of staff after the Department of Defense concluded he had misused taxpayer money. Ward then retired with the rank of lieutenant general in November 2012. There is suspicion among some of those who served under Ward's command during Operation Restore Hope in Somalia, that he did not earn the Combat Infantryman Badge. There is zero evidence that Ward ever performed duties while personally present and under fire while serving in an assigned infantry, ranger or Special Forces capacity, in a unit of brigade, regimental, or smaller size, engaged in active ground combat, to close with and destroy the enemy with direct fires.
Contents
- Video message gen william e ward
- Video highlight military strategy forum gen william e ward commander u s africa command
- Education
- Military service
- Probe
- Rank
- Awards and decorations
- Notable memberships
- References
Video highlight military strategy forum gen william e ward commander u s africa command
Education
Ward holds an M.A. in Political Science from Pennsylvania State University and a B.A. in Political Science from Morgan State University. While at Morgan State he was a member of the National Society of Pershing Rifles. His military education includes the Infantry Officer Basic and Advanced courses, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, and U.S. Army War College.
Military service
Ward was commissioned into the infantry in 1971. His military service includes overseas tours in Korea, Egypt, Somalia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Israel, two tours in Germany, and a wide variety of assignments in the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii. He relinquished command of Africa Command to General Carter F. Ham.
Probe
While a retirement ceremony was held in April 2011, Ward remained on active-duty, pending a special Army investigation by the Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Defense. The investigation has run 17 months and a ruling on the matter is pending with Defense Secretary Leon Panetta. Unnamed "defense officials said Ward is facing numerous allegations that he spent several hundreds of thousands of dollars allowing unauthorized people, including family members, to fly on government planes, and spent excessive amounts of money on hotel rooms, transportation and other expenses when he traveled as head of Africa Command". In a Pentagon report, Ward spent $129,000 of taxpayer money on an 11-day trip with an entourage of 13 military and civilian personnel.
Rank
Ward held the four-star grade of general while serving as Commander, U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), a "position of importance and responsibility" under Title 10 of the United States Code Subtitle 601 (10 USC § 601). Ward was reduced in rank upon retirement by Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta. Ward's retired rank is that of Lieutenant General which was determined to be the last rank in which he had satisfactorily served.
Awards and decorations
Ward received the following awards and decorations:
William E. Ward received the Trumpet Award in 2010 as well as the BEYA award for Lifetime Achievement.