Leadership of the United States Africa Command
Seal of the United States Africa Command
This is a list of all commanders, deputy commanders, senior enlisted leaders, and chiefs of staff of the United States Africa Command.
Current headquarters staff[]
Stephen J. Townsend, Commander
Kirk W. Smith, Deputy Commander
Joel Tyler, Chief of Staff
, Director, Intelligence (J2)[1]- Gregory K. Anderson, Director, Operations/Cyber (J3/6)
- , Director, Logistics (J4)[2]
Kenneth Ekman, Director, Strategy, Engagement, and Programs (J5)
, Deputy Director, Strategy, Engagement, and Programs (J5)
List of commanders of the United States Africa Command[]
| Commander of the United States Africa Command | |
|---|---|
 Emblem of the United States Africa Command | |
| Abbreviation | CDRUSAFRICOM[3] |
| Reports to | President of the United States Secretary of Defense |
| Appointer | The President with Senate advice and consent |
| Term length | 3 years |
| Constituting instrument | 10 U.S.C. § 164 |
| Formation | 1 October 2007 |
| First holder | William E. Ward |
| Deputy | Deputy Commander, United States Africa Command |
| No. | Commander | Term | Service branch | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portrait | Name | Took office | Left office | Term length | ||
| 1 | General William E. Ward (born 1949) | 1 October 2007 | 9 March 2011 | 3 years, 159 days |  U.S. Army | |
| 2 | General Carter F. Ham (born 1952) | 9 March 2011 | 5 April 2013 | 2 years, 27 days | U.S. Army | |
| 3 | General David M. Rodriguez (born 1954) | 5 April 2013 | 18 July 2016 | 3 years, 104 days | U.S. Army | |
| 4 | General Thomas D. Waldhauser (born 1953) | 18 July 2016 | 26 July 2019 | 3 years, 8 days |  U.S. Marine Corps | |
| 5 | General Stephen J. Townsend (born 1959) | 26 July 2019 | Incumbent | 2 years, 149 days | U.S. Army | |
Commanders of U.S. Africa Command by branch of service
- Army: 4
- Marine Corps: 1
- Air Force: none
- Navy: none
- Space Force: none
- Coast Guard: none
List of deputy commanders of the United States Africa Command[]
| No. | Deputy Commander | Term | Service branch | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portrait | Name | Took office | Left office | Term length | ||
| 1 | Vice Admiral Robert T. Moeller[4] (1951–2011) | October 10, 2007 | April 12, 2010 | 2 years, 184 days |  U.S. Navy | |
| 2 | Vice Admiral Charles J. Leidig[5] (born 1955) | August 2010 | June 2013 | ~2 years, 304 days | U.S. Navy | |
| 3 | Lieutenant General Steven A. Hummer (born 1952) | June 2013 | ~June 2015 | ~2 years, 21 days | U.S. Marine Corps | |
| 4 | Vice Admiral Michael T. Franken (born 1957) | ~June 22, 2015 | ~August 2, 2017 | ~2 years, 41 days | U.S. Navy | |
| 5 | Lieutenant General James C. Vechery (born 1966) | ~August 2, 2017 | ~August 4, 2020 | ~3 years, 2 days |  U.S. Air Force | |
| 6 | Lieutenant General Kirk W. Smith | ~August 4, 2020 | Incumbent | ~1 year, 140 days | U.S. Air Force | |
![Robert T. Moeller[4]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/62/VADM_Robert_T_Moeller.jpg/100px-VADM_Robert_T_Moeller.jpg)
![Charles J. Leidig[5]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/04/Vice_Adm._Charles_J._Leidig%2C_Jr.jpg/100px-Vice_Adm._Charles_J._Leidig%2C_Jr.jpg)
List of senior enlisted leaders of the United States Africa Command[]
| No. | Senior enlisted leader | Term | Service branch | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portrait | Name | Took office | Left office | Term length | ||
| 1 | Command Sergeant Major [6] | November 1, 2007 | March 11, 2011 | 3 years, 130 days | U.S. Army | |
| 2 | Chief Master Sergeant [7] | March 11, 2011 | July 2013 | ~2 years, 112 days | U.S. Air Force | |
| 3 | Command Sergeant Major [8] | July 2013 | September 27, 2016 | ~3 years, 88 days | U.S. Army | |
| 4 | Chief Master Sergeant Ramón Colón-López[9] (born 1971) | September 27, 2016 | November 2019 | ~3 years, 35 days | U.S. Air Force | |
| - | Command Master Chief Acting | November 2019 | February 28, 2020 | ~119 days | U.S. Navy | |
| 5 | Sergeant Major | February 28, 2020 | Incumbent | 1 year, 297 days | U.S. Marine Corps | |
![Mark S. Ripka[6]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/CSM_Mark_S._Ripka_%28cropped%29.jpg/100px-CSM_Mark_S._Ripka_%28cropped%29.jpg)
![Jack Johnson Jr.[7]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/91/CMSgt_Jack_Johnson_Jr.jpg/100px-CMSgt_Jack_Johnson_Jr.jpg)
![Darrin J. Bohn[8]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3a/Darrin_J._Bohn_%282%29.jpg/100px-Darrin_J._Bohn_%282%29.jpg)
![Ramón Colón-López[9]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/CZ_at_AFRICOM_2016.jpg/100px-CZ_at_AFRICOM_2016.jpg)
List of chiefs of staff of the United States Africa Command[]
| No. | Chief of Staff | Term | Service branch | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portrait | Name | Took office | Left office | Term length | ||
| 1 | Major General [10] | October 1, 2007 | October 7, 2010 | 3 years, 6 days | U.S. Air Force | |
| 2 | Major General [11] | October 7, 2010 | June 1, 2011 | 237 days | U.S. Army | |
| 3 | Major General [12] | June 1, 2011 | March 23, 2012 | 296 days | U.S. Air Force | |
| 4 | Major General [13] | March 23, 2012 | February 2014 | ~1 year, 315 days | U.S. Air Force | |
| 5 | Major General [14] | February 2014 | June 2016 | ~2 years, 121 days | U.S. Air Force | |
| 6 | Major General Roger L. Cloutier | June 2016 | July 2018 | ~2 years, 30 days | U.S. Army | |
| 7 | Major General | July 2018 | June 2020 | ~1 year, 336 days | U.S. Army | |
| 8 | Major General William K. Gayler | July 2020 | ~21 June 2021 | ~355 days | U.S. Army | |
| 9 | Major General Joel K. Tyler | 21 June 2021 | Incumbent | 184 days | U.S. Army | |
![Michael A. Snodgrass[10]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ed/Maj_Gen_Michael_A._Snodgrass.jpg/100px-Maj_Gen_Michael_A._Snodgrass.jpg)
![Richard J. Sherlock Jr.[11]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/Richard_J._Sherlock%2C_Jr.png/100px-Richard_J._Sherlock%2C_Jr.png)
![H. D. Polumbo Jr.[12]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e9/H._D._Polumbo%2C_Jr._%281%29.jpg/100px-H._D._Polumbo%2C_Jr._%281%29.jpg)
![O.G. Mannon[13]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a1/Maj_Gen_O.G._Mannon.webp/100px-Maj_Gen_O.G._Mannon.webp.png)
![Michael J. Kingsley[14]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/de/Maj_Gen_Michael_J._Kingsley.jpg/100px-Maj_Gen_Michael_J._Kingsley.jpg)
References[]
- ^ "Rear Admiral Heidi Berg". www.navy.mil.
- ^ "Rear Admiral Kevin Jones". www.navy.mil.
- ^ "DOD Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms, January 2021" (PDF). jcs.mil. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
- ^ "Vice Admiral Robert T. Moeller, Former Deputy to the Commander for Military Operations (October 2007 - April 2010) | United States Africa Command". 19 May 2015. Archived from the original on 19 May 2015.
- ^ "VADM Charles L. Leidig". Archived from the original on 6 March 2010.
- ^ "CSM Ripka". Archived from the original on 20 January 2008.
- ^ "CMSgt Jack Johnson Jr". Archived from the original on 13 February 2013.
- ^ "CSM Darrin J. Bohn". Archived from the original on 13 April 2015.
- ^ "CMS Ramón Colón-López". Archived from the original on 4 July 2017.
- ^ "Maj. Gen. Michael A. Snodgrass". Archived from the original on 19 May 2015.
- ^ "Maj. Gen. Richard James Sherlock Jr". Archived from the original on 19 May 2015.
- ^ "Maj. Gen. H. D. Polumbo, Jr". Archived from the original on 19 May 2015.
- ^ "Maj. Gen. O.G. Mannon". Archived from the original on 9 January 2014.
- ^ "Maj. Gen. Michael J. Kingsley". Archived from the original on 13 April 2015.
See also[]
Categories:
- Lists of American military personnel