Frances J. Allen

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Frances J. Allen
Allegiance Canada
Service/branch Royal Canadian Air Force
Years of service1983–present
RankCanadian RCAF (shoulder) OF-8.svg Lieutenant-General
Unit764 Communications Squadron
76 Communications Group
Commands heldVice Chief of the Defence Staff
NATO Military Representative
Deputy Vice Chief of the Defence Staff
Director General Defence Security
Joint Force Cyber Component Commander
AwardsCommander of the Order of Military Merit
Canadian Forces' Decoration with Bar

Frances Jennifer Allen CMM CD is a Canadian Armed Forces officer serving as a lieutenant-general in the Royal Canadian Air Force. On June 28, 2021, she assumed office as Vice Chief of the Defence Staff, becoming the first woman to hold the position.[1][2]

Military career[]

Allen's prior roles included serving as the Canadian military's director general for cyberspace, the National Defence Headquarters director general for information management operations, the joint force cyber component commander, and deputy Vice Chief of the Defence Staff.[3][4]

In July 2020, Allen was appointed as Canada's military representative at NATO headquarters in Brussels. Allen was considered a contender to become Chief of the Defence Staff after the departure of General Jonathan Vance in January 2021, but that position was given to Admiral Art McDonald.[5]

On March 9, 2021, it was announced that Allen would succeed Lieutenant-General Michael Rouleau as Vice Chief of the Defence Staff, making her the first woman to serve in that role.[5][3] Allen's appointment to the vice chief position came amidst increased public and political scrutiny of the senior leadership of the Canadian Armed Forces because of sexual misconduct investigations into the two previous chiefs of the Defence Staff (Vance and McDonald).[4]

Awards and Decorations[]

Allen's personal awards and decorations include the following:

CAN Order of Military Merit Commander and Officer.pngCD-ribbon and 2 bars.png


Ribbon Description Notes
CAN Order of Military Merit Commander and Officer.png Order of Military Merit (CMM)
  • Appointed Commander (CMM) on 27 May 2019[6]
  • Appointed Officer (OMM) on 06 March 2017[6]
Canadian Forces Decoration (CD)
  • with two Clasp for 32 years of services

References[]

  1. ^ "Lt.-Gen. Frances Allen becomes first woman appointed as Canadian military's vice-chief of defence staff". nationalpost. Retrieved 2021-04-09.
  2. ^ "Lieutenant-General Allen assumes the role of the Vice Chief of the Defence Staff". National Defence / Canadian Armed Forces. June 28, 2021. Retrieved June 30, 2021.
  3. ^ a b Stephenson, Mercedes; Cossette, Marc-André; Connolly, Amanda (March 8, 2021). "Canada getting first female vice chief of defence staff after military shake-up". Global News. Retrieved March 8, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. ^ a b Brewster, Murray (March 9, 2021). "Canadian military gets its 1st female vice-chief of the defence staff in major shakeup". CBC News. Retrieved March 9, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ a b "Lt.-Gen. Frances Allen becomes first woman appointed as Canadian military's vice-chief of defence staff". National Post. Canadian Press. March 9, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  6. ^ a b "Order of Military Merit List". The Governor General of Canada.

External links[]

Military offices
Preceded by Vice Chief of the Defence Staff
2021–present 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
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