Geoff Shepherd
Geoff Shepherd | |
|---|---|
| File:CAF Geoff Shepherd.jpg Air Marshal G.D. Shepherd, AO | |
| Nickname(s) | Shep |
| Allegiance |  Commonwealth of Australia |
| Service/ |  Royal Australian Air Force |
| Years of service | 1971 - Present |
| Rank | Air Marshal |
| Commands held | 6 SQN, 82 WG, HQAC, RAAF |
| Awards | Officer Of The Order Of Australia, Commander of the Legion of Merit (United States), Pingat Jasa Gemilang (Tentera) (Singapore) |
Air Marshal Geoffrey David Shepherd AO is the present Chief of Air Force (CAF) of the Royal Australian Air Force.
Service History
Shepherd commenced his RAAF service with the 1971 RAAF Academy intake, graduating in December 1974 with a Bachelor of Science (Physics) degree from Melbourne University.
He had operational flying tours on Mirage III fighter aircraft at RAAF Base Butterworth (Malaysia), the F-111 strike bomber at RAAF Base Amberley, both as a line pilot and as the Training Flight Commander and as a flying instructor at No 1 Flying Training School RAAF Base Point Cook. He has approximately 4500 flying hours, including 2500 hours in the F-111.
He has held staff appointments at 82 Wing (F-111) HQ, as the Assistant Defence Adviser at the Australian High Commission in Singapore, and in Force Development in the field of capability analysis. He also undertook staff training at the Joint Services Staff College.
His command appointments were Commanding Officer of 6 SQN (F-111), in the rank of Wing Commander, and Officer Commanding 82 Wing (F-111), as a Group Captain.
He was promoted to Air Commodore on 1 December 1998 and served two years as the Chief of Staff at HQ Air Command. He was the Director General Operations at the Defence Signals Directorate from January 2001 until October 2002, when he moved on to become Director-General Joint Operations and Plans in Strategic Operations Division.
Air Commodore Shepherd was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the Australia Day 2000 Honours List.
He was promoted to Air Vice Marshal on 2 December 2003 and appointed Air Commander Australia taking effect 15 December 2003.
On 23 May 2005, the Minister for Defence announced that, upon promotion to Air Marshal (as of 4 July 2005), Shepherd would succeed Angus Houston as the Chief of Air Force.
Personal
Shepherd is known throughout the RAAF for calling out "Cooee", a distinctive Australian vocalisation used mainly in the outback, with which he ended his first address as Chief of Air Force.[1]
He is married to Anne, with whom he has two sons. His interests include gardening, rugby league football, and travelling and understanding other cultures.
Honours and awards
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- Officer in the Order of Australia (AO) (advanced to this in 2006, previously a Member of the Order (AM) since 2000)
- Australian Service Medal with SE ASIA clasp
- Defence Force Service Medal with 4 clasps
- Australian Defence Medal
- Commander of the Legion of Merit (United States) - 18 January2007[2]
- Pingat Jasa Gemilang (Tentera) (Meritorious Service Medal - Military) (Singapore) - 8 May2007[3]
References
- ^ Shepherd, Geoffrey (19 March 2007). "CAF Closing Address" (PDF). 2007 Air Show Conference. Retrieved 2007-10-10.
- ^ "Australian Air Chief visits Bolling". Bolling Air Force Base. 2007-01-19. Retrieved 2007-11-28.
- ^ "Australian Chief of Air Force Receives Prestigious Military Medal". MINDEF Singapore News Releases. 2007-05-25. Retrieved 2007-11-28.