Colin Keiver is a retired

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...

major general who was the deputy commander of the

from May 2021 until July 2023.

Early life and education

Keiver was born and raised on a farm outside of

Three Hills, Alberta Three Hills is a town in southern Alberta, Canada. It takes its name from the three somewhat-larger-than-normal hills to its north. History Three Hills post office dates from 1904. Three Hills was incorporated as a village in 1912, the yea ...

. From a young age, he had a keen interest in

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...

where he received his glider pilot licence through air cadets at the age of 16 in

Gimli, Manitoba Gimli is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community in the Rural Municipality of Gimli on the west side of Lake Winnipeg in Manitoba, Canada. It is located 80 km north of the provincial capital Winnipeg. The community's first European settle ...

. He holds a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

from the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...

, a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in defence studies from the

Royal Military College of Canada The Royal Military College of Canada (), abbreviated in English as RMC and in French as CMR, is a Military academy#Canada, military academy and, since 1959, a List of universities in Canada#Ontario, degree-granting university of the Canadian ...

and is a graduate of the

Royal College of Defence Studies The Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) instructs the most promising senior officers of the British Armed Forces, His Majesty's Diplomatic Service and Civil Service in national defence and international security matters at the highest leve ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, UK.

Military career

Born in

Three Hills Three Hills is a town in southern Alberta, Canada. It takes its name from the three somewhat-larger-than-normal hills to its north. History Three Hills post office dates from 1904. Three Hills was incorporated as a village in 1912, the yea ...

, Alberta, Keiver joined the

Canadian Armed Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...

in 1991 and served with the

Calgary Highlanders The Calgary Highlanders (10th Canadians) is a Canadian Army Primary Reserve infantry regiment, headquartered at Mewata Armouries in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The regiment is a part-time reserve unit, under the command of 41 Canadian Brigade Grou ...

. Progressing from primary flying training on the

Beechcraft CT-134 Musketeer The Beechcraft CT-134 Musketeer is a military training derivative of the Beechcraft Musketeer, Musketeer built by Beechcraft for the Canadian Armed Forces. The CT-134 was a single engine, low-wing, four-seat General aviation, light aircraft wi ...

at CFB Portage la Prairie to completing basic flying training on the

Canadair CT-114 Tutor The Canadair CT-114 Tutor (company model CL-41) is a jet trainer that was designed and produced by Canadian aircraft manufacturer Canadair. It served as the standard jet trainer of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), and later Canadian Armed ...

CFB Moose Jaw Canadian Forces Base Moose Jaw , also known as 15 Wing Moose Jaw, is a Canadian Forces base located south of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. It is operated as an air force base by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and is home to RCAF Pilot trainin ...

, he went on to multi-engine training returning to CFB Portage la Prairie where he trained on the

Beechcraft King Air The Beechcraft King Air is a line of American utility aircraft produced by Beechcraft. The King Air line comprises a number of twin-turboprop models that have been divided into two families. The Model 90 and 100 series developed in the 1960s ...

before transitioning to flying the CC-130 in 435 Transport and Rescue Squadron in 1994. In 2001, he had been sent on exchange with the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

to fly

KC-130 The Lockheed Martin (previously Lockheed) KC-130 is a family of the extended-range tanker version of the C-130 Hercules transport aircraft. The KC-130J is the latest variant operated by the United States Marine Corps (USMC), with 48 delivered ...

's in

VMGR-252 Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 252 (VMGR-252) is a United States Marine Corps KC-130J squadron. They are a part of Marine Aircraft Group 14 (MAG-14), 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (2nd MAW) and provide both fixed-wing and rotary-wing ae ...

as the Director of Safety and Standardization. In February 2002, while on exchange with the

, he had been deployed to

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

for 3 months to play a part in

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used by the U.S. government for both the first stage (2001–2014) of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response ...

. In 2004, Keiver returned to Canada to

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

, Manitoba, as A3 Transport Operations at 1 Canadian Air Division Headquarters. During his time at the 1 Canadian Air Division Headquarters, he was deployed to

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

as the Air Operations Advisor for the African Union Mission in Sudan from late November 2005, to late May 2006. Upon his return to 1 Canadian Air Division Headquarters as A3 Transport where he had played a vital role in introducing both the

CC-177 The McDonnell Douglas/Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF) between the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas. The C-17 carries forward the name of two previ ...

and the CC-130J to service. In 2009, he attended the

Canadian Forces College The Canadian Forces College (CFC) is a military staff college for senior and general officers of the Canadian Armed Forces. It provides graduate-level military education courses designed to develop leadership abilities within the Canadian Forces ...

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Ontario, where he obtained a

in defence studies. Transitioning from the

to flying the CC-130J in

436 Transport Squadron 436 Transport Squadron is a unit of the Royal Canadian Air Force. It currently operates the CC-130J Super Hercules from 8 Wing Trenton in Trenton, Ontario. History 436 Transport Squadron was originally a squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Forc ...

when it was delivered in June 2010 as the squadron commander, Keiver has had lots of experience in command roles at

CFB Trenton Canadian Forces Base Trenton (also CFB Trenton), formerly RCAF Station Trenton, is a Canadian Forces base located within the city of Quinte West, Ontario. It is operated as an air force base by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and is the hub ...

from being the 27th commander of 436 Squadron to becoming the 49th Wing Commander of

8 Wing Trenton Canadian Forces Base Trenton (also CFB Trenton), formerly RCAF Station Trenton, is a Canadian Forces base located within the city of Quinte West, Ontario. It is operated as an air force base by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and is the hub ...

in the summer of 2015 until the summer of 2017. Throughout his time between being the commander of

and the commander of

, he had been in Ottawa as the Director Air Simulation and Training and had attended the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. After finishing his time in Trenton, he was appointed Director Defence Program Coordination in the National Defence Headquarters of Canada for a year. He was appointed the commander of JTF-I in the summer of 2018. As of July 2019, he has been the Director General of Air and Space Force Development. In April, 2021, he was promoted to the rank of major general to be appointed the deputy commander of the

, which he would hold command of up until his retirement in July 2023.

Honours and decorations

Keiver has earned the following decorations throughout his military career.

South-West Asia Service Medal with Afganistan bar ribbon

Timeline of ranks

Notes

References

, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Keiver, Colin 1968 births Living people Canadian military personnel from Alberta Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies Canadian generals Major generals Canadian military personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) University of Manitoba alumni Royal Military College of Canada alumni People from Kneehill County Canadian Air Force personnel Royal Canadian Air Force officers Royal Canadian Air Force generals United States Marine Corps officers