Surgeon General of the United States Air Force

This article is about the senior physician in the U.S. Air Force. For the head of the U.S. Public Health Service, see Surgeon General of the United States. For other uses, see Surgeon General (disambiguation).

Surgeon General of the Air Force
Seal of the US Air Force Medical Service
Flag of an Air Force lieutenant general
Incumbent Lieutenant General John DeGoes since July 31, 2024
Air Staff Air Force Medical Service
Reports to	Chief of Staff of the Air Force
Appointer	The President with Senate advice and consent
Constituting instrument	10 U.S.C. § 8036
Formation	1948
First holder	Malcolm C. Grow
Website	Official Website

The Surgeon General of the Air Force is the senior-most Medical Service officer in the United States Department of the Air Force and is the principal medical advisor for both the United States Air Force and United States Space Force. In recent times, this has been a lieutenant general who serves as head of the United States Air Force Medical Service (AFMS). The Surgeon General is usually the senior Medical Corps officer, but acting surgeons general have been from other branches of the medical service.

History

In September 1947 the combat elements of the Army Air Forces separated from the U.S. Army, forming the United States Air Force. But a few Air Force support functions, such as medical care, remained U.S. Army responsibilities for the next two years. Starting in 1948, the Air Force and the Air Surgeon, Maj. Gen. Malcolm C. Grow (1887-1960), began to convince the U.S. Army and the administration of President Harry S. Truman that the Air Force needed its own medical service. In the summer of 1949, Air Force General Order No. 35 established a medical service with the following officer personnel components: Medical Corps, Dental Corps, Veterinary Corps, Medical Service Corps, Air Force Nurse Corps, and Women's Medical Specialist Corps.

List of Surgeons Generals

No.	Surgeon General of the Air Force		Term
	Portrait	Name	Took office	Left office	Term length
1		Major General Malcolm C. Grow	July 1, 1949	November 30, 1949	152 days
2		Major General Harry G. Armstrong	December 1, 1949	June 30, 1954	4 years, 211 days
3		Major General Dan C. Ogle	July 1, 1954	November 30, 1958	4 years, 152 days
4		Major General Oliver K. Niess	December 1, 1958	December 1, 1963	5 years
5		Lieutenant General Richard L. Bohannon	December 2, 1963	November 30, 1967	3 years, 363 days
6		Lieutenant General Kenneth E. Pletcher	December 1, 1967	April 30, 1970	2 years, 150 days
7		Lieutenant General Alonzo A. Towner	May 1, 1970	July 31, 1972	2 years, 91 days
8		Lieutenant General Robert A. Patterson	August 1, 1972	July 31, 1975	2 years, 364 days
9		Lieutenant General George E. Schafer	August 1, 1975	July 31, 1978	2 years, 364 days
10		Lieutenant General Paul W. Myers	August 1, 1978	July 31, 1982	3 years, 364 days
11		Lieutenant General Max B. Bralliar	August 1, 1982	July 31, 1985	2 years, 364 days
12		Lieutenant General Murphy A. Chesney	August 1, 1985	July 31, 1988	2 years, 365 days
13		Lieutenant General Monte B. Miller	August 1, 1988	July 31, 1991	2 years, 364 days
14		Lieutenant General Alexander M. Sloan	August 1, 1991	July 11, 1994	2 years, 344 days
-		Major General Robert A. Buethe Acting	July 12, 1994	September 25, 1994	75 days
15		Lieutenant General Edgar R. Anderson Jr.	September 26, 1994	November 14, 1996	2 years, 49 days
16		Lieutenant General Charles H. Roadman II	November 15, 1996	October 10, 1999	2 years, 329 days
-		Major General Michael K. Wyrick Acting	October 11, 1999	October 31, 1999	20 days
17		Lieutenant General Paul K. Carlton Jr.	November 1, 1999	October 14, 2002	2 years, 347 days
18		Lieutenant General George P. Taylor	October 15, 2002	July 31, 2006	3 years, 289 days
19		Lieutenant General James G. Roudebush	August 1, 2006	August 11, 2009	3 years, 10 days
20		Lieutenant General Charles B. Green	August 12, 2009	July 19, 2012	2 years, 342 days
21		Lieutenant General Thomas W. Travis	July 20, 2012	June 5, 2015	2 years, 320 days
22		Lieutenant General Mark A. Ediger	June 6, 2015	June 4, 2018	2 years, 363 days
23		Lieutenant General Dorothy A. Hogg	June 5, 2018	June 4, 2021	2 years, 364 days

No.	Surgeon General of the Air Force and Space Force		Term
	Portrait	Name	Took office	Left office	Term length
24		Lieutenant General Robert I. Miller	June 4, 2021	June 14, 2024	3 years, 10 days
-		Major General John DeGoes Acting	June 14, 2024	July 31, 2024	47 days
25		Lieutenant General John DeGoes	July 31, 2024	Incumbent	114 days

List of Deputy Surgeons Generals

• Brig Gen Olin F. McIlnay, 1945???
• Brig Gen Harry G. Armstrong, June 1949 - December 1949
• Brig Gen Dan C. Ogle, December 1949 - July 1954
• Maj Gen John K. Cullen, August 1959 - June 1961
• Maj Gen Richard L. Bohannon, June 1961 - December 1963
• Maj Gen Alonzo A. Towner, July 1966 - May 1970
• Maj Gen Maxwell Wensel Steel Jr., September 1, 1972 - August 1975
• Maj Gen Benjamin R. Baker, August 1975 - December 1976
• Maj Gen Garth B. Dettinger, December 1976 - May 1980
• Maj Gen James G. Sanders, October 1988 - October 1991
• Maj Gen Leonard M. Randolph Jr., November 1999 - July 2001
• Maj Gen James G. Roudebush, July 2001 - July 2006
• Maj Gen Charles B. Green, August 2006 - August 2009
• Maj Gen Byron C. Hepburn, August 2009 - November 2010
• Maj Gen Thomas W. Travis, November 2010 - July 2012
• Maj Gen Mark A. Ediger, July 2012-June 2015
• Maj Gen Dorothy A. Hogg, June 2015–June 2018
• Maj Gen Sean L. Murphy, June 2018-June 2021
• Maj Gen John DeGoes, June 2021-July 2024

See also

• Surgeon General of the United States
• Surgeon General of the United States Army
• Surgeon General of the United States Navy

External links

• Official website
  • Chronology Of The Air Force Surgeons General