Jerald D. Slack (born February 14, 1936) is a retired

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

in the United States Air National Guard and former Adjutant General of

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

Biography

Slack graduated high school in Pekin, Illinois. Later he would attend

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

, the

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

, and Bradley University.

Career

Slack originally enlisted in the

Illinois Air National Guard The Illinois Air National Guard (IL ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of Illinois, United States of America. It is, along with the Illinois Army National Guard, an element of the Illinois National Guard. As state militia units, the units ...

in 1959. He would transfer to the

Wisconsin Air National Guard The Wisconsin Air National Guard (WI ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of Wisconsin, United States of America. It is, along with the Wisconsin Army National Guard, an element of the Wisconsin National Guard. As state militia units, the unit ...

in 1961 and was commissioned a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

. Slack would acquire more than 3,200 hours flying in a Cessna T-37 Tweet, Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star,

Northrop F-89 Scorpion The Northrop F-89 Scorpion was an American all-weather, twin-engined interceptor aircraft built during the 1950s, the first jet-powered aircraft designed for that role from the outset to enter service. Though its straight wings limited its per ...

Convair F-102 Delta Dagger The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was an American interceptor aircraft designed and manufactured by Convair. Built as part of the backbone of the United States Air Force's air defenses in the late 1950s, it entered service in 1956. Its main purpos ...

, Cessna O-2 Skymaster, Cessna A-37 Dragonfly,

Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is a single-seat, twin-turbofan, straight-wing, subsonic attack aircraft developed by Fairchild Republic for the United States Air Force (USAF). In service since 1976, it is named for the Republ ...

, and the

Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an American military aerial refueling aircraft that was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. It is the predominant variant of the C-135 Stratolifter family of transpor ...

. He was promoted to Major General of August 3, 1990 and his retirement was effective as of February 13, 1996, The day before his 60th birthday. Awards he has received include the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Air Force Commendation Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, the

Air Force Achievement Medal The Achievement Medal is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. The Achievement Medal was first proposed as a means to recognize outstanding achievement or meritorious service of military personnel who were not eligible to recei ...

, the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with oak leaf cluster, the

Air Force Organizational Excellence Award The Air and Space Organizational Excellence Award (ASOEA) is a unit award of the United States Air Force and United States Space Force created by the Secretary of the Air Force on 26 August 1969 as the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award. The award i ...

, the Combat Readiness Medal, the National Defense Service Medal with service star, the

Air Force Longevity Service Award The Air and Space Longevity Service Award (ASLSA) is a military award of the United States Air Force and United States Space Force established as the Air Force Longevity Service Award by Air Force General Order 60, on 25 November 1957 by General ...

with silver oak leaf cluster and two bronze oak leaf clusters, the Armed Forces Reserve Medal with two

hourglass device The Armed Forces Reserve Medal (AFRM) is a service medal of the United States Armed Forces that has existed since 1950. The medal recognizes service performed by members of the reserve components and is awarded to both officers and enlisted perso ...

s, the Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon with service star, and the Air Force Training Ribbon.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Slack, Jerald D. Military personnel from Wisconsin Adjutants General of Wisconsin United States Air Force generals Recipients of the Legion of Merit Purdue University alumni University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumni Bradley University alumni Living people People from Pekin, Illinois 1936 births Military personnel from Illinois