Denis Mercier

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Officier général francais 5 etoiles.svg Denis Mercier
Denis Mercier 04299 général.jpg
General Denis Mercier, 2015
Born (1959-10-04) 4 October 1959 (age 61)
Allegiance France
Service/branchRoundel of the French Air Force French Air Force
Years of service1983 – 2018
RankFrench Air Force-général d'armée aérienne.svg Général d'armée aérienne
Commands heldSupreme Allied Commander Transformation NATO
Chief of Staff of the French Air Force
Major general of the French Air Force
Divisional General of the French Air Force
Commandant of the French Air Force base Cazaux Air Base (BA 120)
Commandant of the French Air Force base Taverny Air Base (BA 921)
Commandant of the French Air Force base Reims – Champagne Air Base (BA 112)
Commandant of the French Air Force base Cambrai – Épinoy Air Base (BA 103)
Battles/warsOperation Crécerelle
Operation Deny Flight
AwardsLegion Honneur GO ribbon.svg Grand Officier de la Légion d’Honneur
National Order of Merit Officer Ribbon.png Officier de l’Ordre National du Mérite
Medaille de l'Aeronautique ribbon.svg Medal of Aeronautics

Général d'armée aérienne Denis Mercier is a former Chief of Staff of the French Air Force. He was appointed on 17 September 2012.[1] On September 30, 2015, he succeeded General Paloméros and became Supreme Allied Commander Transformation of NATO.[2]

Military career[]

He joined the French Air Force academy in 1979 where he completed a master's degree of Science in 1981. Qualified as a fighter pilot in 1983, he acquired extensive experience both as an operational commander and as a fighter pilot, having flown a total of more than 3000 flying hours primarily on Mirage F1C and Mirage 2000C aircraft, including 182 hours in combat missions.

Above all, NATO has been a constant throughout his career, at the tactical, operational and strategic level. Indeed, he commanded the 1/12 "Cambrésis" Fighter Squadron, a founding unit of the NATO Tiger association. He participated in numerous other NATO exercises and operations, including Operation Deny Flight over Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1994. Subsequently, he served in the NATO department of the French Joint Operational Planning Headquarters, working as a project officer for Exercise "Strong Resolve ’98", during which he embarked aboard USS Mount Whitney as director of Joint Fires. In 1999, he integrated the operational planning of French participation in NATO Operation Allied Force in Kosovo.

Posted from 1999 to 2002 as deputy head of the combined joint task force deputy branch at Regional Headquarters AFNORTH, in Brunssum (Netherlands), he contributed to the development of the Combined Joint Task Force (CJTF) concept. He was a member of the combined analysis team for Exercise "Allied Effort '01" and an evaluator of the CJTF HQ for Exercise "Strong Resolve '02". He also acted as liaison officer for the CJTF HQ COMSTRIKFLTLANT (Commander Striking Fleet Atlantic) stationed in Norfolk.

Back in France, he was appointed as the commander of Reims Air force base, integrating the Mirage F1CR squadrons under his command into ISAF in Afghanistan.

From 2004 to 2008 he was assigned to the French Air Force headquarters in Paris, as the head of the plans division and was nominated as a flag officer in 2007 as Acting Chief of Staff (ACOS) for budget and performance.

He then commanded the French Air Force Academy in Salon-de-Provence, where he was a transformative leader, fostering enduring partnerships with allies and prestigious universities.

Following his nomination as senior military advisor for the minister of Defence in 2010, General Mercier prepared and participated in all NATO ministerial meetings between 2010 and 2012, as well as the NATO summits of Lisbon and Chicago. Moreover, he was the minister's special advisor for Operation Unified Protector over Libya. He became the French Air Force Chief of Staff on September 17, 2012, which formalized his contact with Air Chiefs throughout the Alliance.

On 28 June 2013, he was named Commander of the French Legion of Honor.

He was confirmed by the North Atlantic Council as Supreme Allied Commander Transformation on 23 March 2015, date on which he has been awarded the rank of Grand Officer of the French Legion of Honor. He is also, among other distinctions, an officer of the National Order of Merit.

Major military awards[]

Legion Honneur GO ribbon.svg Ordre national du Merite Officier ribbon.svg Medaille de l'Aeronautique ribbon.svg
Croix du Combattant (1930 France) ribbon.svg Medaille d'Outre-Mer (Coloniale) ribbon.svg Medaille de la Defense Nationale Or ribbon.svg
Medaille de Reconnaissance de la Nation (d'Afrique du Nord) ribbon.svg Medaille commemorative Francaise ribbon.svg Al Saud Commander ribbon.png
BEL Kroonorde Commandeur BAR.svg Noribbon.svg Pingat Jasa Gemilang (Tentera) ribbon.png
MSM Ribbon-military.png POL Brązowy Medal Wojska Polskiego BAR.svg Grand Cross Military Merit Order UAE.png
BRA Ordem do Mérito Aeronáutico Grande Oficial.png GER Bundeswehr Honour Cross Gold ribbon.svg ITA OMRI 2001 GUff BAR.svg
ESP Gran Cruz Merito Aeronautico (Distintivo Blanco) pasador.svg Noribbon.svg NATO Meritorious Service Medal bar.svg

References[]

  1. ^ "Air Force Chief of Staff, General Denis Mercier" (PDF). Retrieved May 26, 2014.
  2. ^ Le général Denis Mercier accède à l’un des commandements suprêmes de l’Otan, Ministere de la defense
Military offices
Preceded by
Jean-Paul Paloméros
Chief of Staff of the French Air Force
17 September 2012 – 21 September 2015
Succeeded by
André Lanata
Preceded by
Jean-Paul Paloméros
Allied Command Transformation
30 September 2015 – 11 September 2018
Succeeded by
André Lanata
Retrieved from ""