Donald C. Wurster

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Lt. Gen. Donald C. Wurster United States Air Force

General Donald C. Wurster
Nickname	Donny
Place of birth	Washington, D.C.
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Air Force
Years of service	1973–present
Rank	Lieutenant General
Commands held	Air Force Special Operations Command
Battles/wars	Gulf War
Awards	Defense Superior Service Medal(3) Legion of Merit (2) Defense Meritorious Service Medal Meritorious Service Medal(5) Air Medal Aerial Achievement Medal(2) Air Force Commendation Medal(2) Air Force Achievement Medal Humanitarian Service Medal(2)

Lt. Gen. Donny Wurster (left), Air Force Special Operations Command commander, and Vice Adm. Charles Wurster (right), U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Area commander. Two brothers, six stars.

Lt. Gen. Donald C. Wurster is Commander, Air Force Special Operations Command, Hurlburt Field, FL. The command is a major command of the U.S. Air Force and the Air Force component of U.S. Special Operations Command. AFSOC provides Air Force Special Operations Forces for worldwide deployment and assignment to unified combatant commanders. The command has approximately 12,900 active-duty, Reserve, Air National Guard and civilian professionals.

Born in Washington, D.C., General Wurster was commissioned in 1973 upon graduation from the United States Air Force Academy. In 1974, he completed undergraduate helicopter training at Fort Rucker, AL. He has commanded special operations forces at the squadron, group, wing and subunified command level, and he served as commander of all U.S. forces assigned to Joint Task Force-510 during Operation Enduring Freedom - Philippines. Prior to his current assignment, the general was Deputy Director, Center for Special Operations, USSOCOM.

General Wurster is a command pilot with more than 4,000 flying hours, including assignments in both rescue and special operations.

General Wurster is married to the former Ronda Schovan and they have one son and one daughter.

His Brother Charles D. Wurster is a Vice Admiral in the US Coast Guard. General and Vice Adm. Wurster's family have a record of military service dating back to the Revolutionary War. As three-star flag officers, they also hold the highest rank of anyone in their family. Their father, retired USAF Colonel Charles A. Wurster, was a F-51 and F-80 (P-80) pilot in the Korean War.

1 Education
2 Assignments
3 Flight Information
4 Major Awards and Decorations
5 Effective Dates Of Promotion

[edit] Education

1973 Bachelor of Science degree, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colo.
1982 Distinguished graduate, Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
1983 Master of Arts degree, Webster University, St. Louis, Mo.
1987 Distinguished graduate, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
1994 Air War College, by correspondence
1997 Industrial College of the Armed Forces, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C.

[edit] Assignments

June 1973 - July 1974, student, undergraduate helicopter training, Fort Rucker, Ala.
July 1974 - March 1975, student, HH-3E Jolly Green Giant training, Hill AFB, Utah
March 1975 - May 1976, HH-3E pilot, Detachment 13, 41st Rescue and Weather Reconnaissance Wing, Osan Air Base, South Korea
May 1976 - July 1979, HH-3E instructor pilot, 71st Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron, Elmendorf AFB, Alaska
July 1979 - November 1980, inactive Air Force Reserve, Lowry AFB, Colo.
November 1980 - December 1983, HH-3E evaluator pilot, 1550th Aircrew Training and Test Wing, Kirtland AFB, N.M.
December 1983 - July 1986, weapon systems program manager for rescue and special operations forces, Aircraft Acquisition Branch, Headquarters Military Airlift Command, Scott AFB, Ill.
July 1986 - June 1987, student, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
June 1987 - July 1989, MH-60G Pave Hawk assistant operations officer, 55th Special Operations Squadron, Eglin AFB, Fla.
July 1989 - August 1991, program element monitor for rescue and special operations forces, Office of the Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.
August 1991 - July 1994, operations officer, then MH-53J Pave Low IIIE commander, 21st Special Operations Squadron, Royal Air Force Woodbridge and Royal Air Force Alconbury, England
July 1994 - July 1996, assistant for electronics, communications and special programs, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict, Forces and Resources, Washington, D.C.
July 1996 - July 1997, student, Industrial College of the Armed Forces, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C.
July 1997 - September 1997, MH-53J requalification, 551st Flying Training Squadron, Kirtland AFB, N.M.
September 1997 - June 1998, Commander, 16th Operations Group, Hurlburt Field, Fla.
June 1998 - July 1999, Commander, 16th Special Operations Wing, Hurlburt Field, Fla.
October 1999 - October 2000, Inspector General, U.S. Transportation Command and Headquarters Air Mobility Command, Scott AFB, Ill.
October 2000 - February 2003, Commander, Special Operations Command, Pacific, Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii
February 2003 - May 2004, special assistant to the Commander, U.S. Special Operations Command, later, Director, Center for Intelligence and Information Operations, USSOCOM, MacDill AFB, Fla.
May 2004 - February 2006, Deputy Director, Center for Special Operations, USSOCOM, MacDill AFB, Fla.
February 2006 - November 2007, Vice Commander, Air Force Special Operations Command, Hurlburt Field, Fla.
November 2007 - present, Commander, Air Force Special Operations Command, Hurlburt Field, Fla.

[edit] Flight Information

Rating: Command pilot
Flight hours: More than 4,000
Aircraft flown: AC-130, HH-3E, MC-130, MH-53J, MH-60G, and CV-22 Osprey

[edit] Major Awards and Decorations

	Defense Superior Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters
	Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster
	Defense Meritorious Service Medal
	Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters
	Air Medal
	Aerial Achievement Medal with oak leaf cluster
	Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
	Air Force Achievement Medal
	Humanitarian Service Medal with bronze star