Michel Hofman

Michel Hofman (* 1961 in Ostend ) is a Belgian admiral and has been in command of the Belgian armed forces since 2020 .

Life

Michel Hofman was born in 1961 in Ostend, on the Belgian North Sea coast in the province of West Flanders .

Military career

After studying at a cadet school, Michel Hofman joined the Belgian Navy in 1978 and graduated from the Royal Military Academy . As a young officer, he initially served on board Belgian anti-mine vehicles and frigates . During this time he took part with the frigate Wandelaar ( Wielingen class ) in the Desert Shield and Desert Storm operations of the Second Gulf War.

After completing a Senior Staff Course in Paris, Hofman was appointed commander of the Westdiep frigate (Wielingen class) in 2000 . In the next few years he was employed by the Dutch-Belgian commandos (including the Admiral Benelux ). In 2006 he moved to the General Staff and was responsible for various Belgian overseas operations.

As a flag officer , he took over the post of commander of the Belgian Navy. In 2015 he moved back to the General Staff. In July 2017 he was appointed to the post of Deputy Chief of the General Staff . In July 2020, he was promoted to Admiral, appointed to the post of Chief of Staff and replaced Marc Compernol . He is the first naval officer to hold this post in over 15 years.

Personal

Michel Hofman lives in Ostend. Although he was born there (in the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium), his mother tongue is French. But he also speaks Dutch perfectly.

Awards (excerpt)

• Grand Officer of the Belgian Order of the Crown (2017)
• Officer of the Leopold Order (2007)

Web links

• Biography of Michel Hofman on the NATO website, accessed August 9, 2020

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} Vice Admiral Michel Hofman to be the new Army Chief , online report of the Grenzechos ( https://www.grenzecho.net ), June 30, 2020