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Daniel P. Leaf is a former United States Air Force officer; he served as deputy commander and acting commander of
United States Pacific Command The United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) is the unified combatant command of the United States Armed Forces responsible for the Indo-Pacific, Indo-Pacific region. It is the oldest and largest of the unified combatant commands. Lead ...
at Camp H. M. Smith in Hawaii.


Early life and education

A native of
Shawano, Wisconsin Shawano ( ) is a city and the county seat of Shawano County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 9,243 at the 2020 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which, is land and is ...
, Leaf earned his commission as a distinguished graduate of the
University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...
Air Force ROTC The Air Force Reserve Officers' Training Corps (AFROTC) is one of the three primary commissioning sources for officers in the United States Air Force and United States Space Force, the other two being the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA ...
program in 1974.


Career

Leaf has commanded a flight, two squadrons, an operations group and two fighter wings, and has directed joint operations. In 1995, LtGen Leaf served as the J-3 for Joint Task Force-Southwest Asia and flew the F-15C over Southern Iraq, enforcing U.N. sanctions on the
Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...
regime. He deployed to
Incirlik Air Base Incirlik Air Base () is a Republic of Turkey, Turkish air base of slightly more than 3320 ac (1335 ha), located in the İncirlik quarter of the city of Adana, Turkey. The base is within an urban area of 1.7 million people, east of the city ...
,
Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
, with one of his
20th Fighter Wing The 20th Fighter Wing is a wing of the United States Air Force and the host unit at Shaw Air Force Base South Carolina. The wing is assigned to Air Combat Command's Fifteenth Air Force. The wing's mission is to provide, project, and sustain ...
squadrons in 1998 and flew the F-16CJ on
Operation Northern Watch Operation Northern Watch (ONW), the successor to Operation Provide Comfort, was a Combined Task Force (CTF) charged with enforcing its own no-fly zone above the 36th parallel in Iraq. Its mission began on 1 January 1997. The coalition partn ...
suppression of enemy air defense missions over Northern Iraq. During
Operation Allied Force The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) carried out an aerial bombing campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during the Kosovo War. The air strikes lasted from 24 March 1999 to 10 June 1999. The bombings continued until an a ...
, LtGen Leaf commanded the 31st Air Expeditionary Wing, which included F-16CG, F-16CJ,
F-15E The McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F-15E Strike Eagle is an American all-weather multirole strike fighter derived from the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. Intended for the Dual-Role Fighter (DRF) program (initially called Enhanced Tactical Fi ...
,
F-117A The Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk is an officially retired American single-seat, subsonic, Twinjet, twin-engined, stealth aircraft, stealth attack aircraft developed by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed's secretive Skunk Works division and operated ...
, A-10A and
EC-130 The Lockheed Martin EC-130 series comprises several slightly different versions of the Lockheed C-130 Hercules that have been and continue to be operated by the U.S. Air Force and, until the 1990s, the U.S. Navy. The EC-130E Airborne Battlef ...
aircraft squadrons. He flew and led F-16CG day and night combat missions against fixed and mobile targets in
Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
and
Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...
. During
Operation Iraqi Freedom The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with the invasion by a United States-led coalition, which resulted in the overthrow of the Ba'athist governm ...
, he served as the Director, Air Component Coordination Element with the Coalition Land Forces Component Commander in
Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...
and
Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
. In that role, he served as the Air Component Commander's direct representative to the Land Commander during planning and initial major combat operations. Prior to this assignment, General Leaf was the Vice Commander of
Air Force Space Command An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosphere ...
,
Peterson Air Force Base Peterson Space Force Base, previously Peterson Air Force Base, Peterson Field, and Army Air Base, Colorado Springs, is a United States Space Force base that shares an airfield with the adjacent Colorado Springs Municipal Airport and is home t ...
, Colorado. Other staff assignments include duty as the Air Force's Director of Operational Requirements and the Deputy J-3, U.S. Forces Korea.


Personal life

Leaf retired from the U.S. Air Force in 2008 after more than 33 years of service. He worked for Northrop Grumman Information Systems as the Vice President, Strategic Initiatives, from September 2008 to January 2012. He returned to government service as the Director of the
Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies The Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (DKI APCSS) is a U.S. Department of Defense institute that officially opened Sept. 4, 1995, in Honolulu, Hawaii. The Center addresses regional and global security issues, inviting mili ...
(APCSS) in January 2012. In 2015, the center was renamed the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (DKI APCSS). After five years at DKI APCSS, he left to star
Phase Minus 1, LLC
He also serves as the Executive Director for Indo-Asia Pacific Operations fo


Education


Military Assignments

#December 1974 - November 1975, student, pilot training, Columbus AFB, Mississippi #March 1976 - November 1976, student, F-4D initial training,
George AFB George Air Force Base was a United States Air Force base located within the city limits, 8 miles northwest, of central Victorville, California, about 75 miles northeast of Los Angeles, California. Established by the United States Army Air Co ...
, California #November 1976 - April 1978, F-4D aircraft commander, flight lead and standardization and evaluation officer, 7th and 9th Tactical Fighter Squadrons,
Holloman AFB Holloman Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base established in 1942 located six miles (10 km) southwest of the central business district of Alamogordo, which is the county seat of Otero County, New Mexico, United States. The ba ...
, New Mexico #May 1978 - August 1978, student, OV-10 training,
Patrick AFB Patrick Space Force Base is a United States Space Force installation located between Satellite Beach and Cocoa Beach, in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is named in honor of Major General Mason Patrick, USAAC. It is home to Space ...
, Florida #August 1978 - April 1980, OV-10 forward air controller, 19th Tactical Air Support Squadron; instructor pilot and flight examiner, 51st Composite Group; later, Chief, and standardization and evaluation officer, 5th Tactical Group,
Osan Air Base Osan Air Base (K-55; ; Hanja: ) is a United States Air Force (USAF) and Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) base located near Songtan station in the city of Pyeongtaek, South Korea, south of Seoul. Despite its name, Osan AB is not within Osan C ...
, South Korea #April 1980 - July 1981, weapons system project officer and standardization and evaluation flight examiner, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces,
Hickam AFB Hickam Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) installation, named in honor of aviation pioneer Lieutenant Colonel Horace Meek Hickam. The installation merged in 2010 with Naval Station Pearl Harbor to become part of the newly for ...
, Hawaii #July 1981 - June 1985, F-15C pilot, instructor pilot, Chief of Training and Scheduling, and flight commander, 44th Tactical Fighter Squadron, later, standardization and evaluation branch chief, 18th Tactical Fighter Wing,
Kadena AB (IATA: DNA, ICAO: RODN) is a United States Air Force base in the towns of Kadena and Chatan and the city of Okinawa, in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is often referred to as the "Keystone of the Pacific" because of its highly strategic loca ...
, Japan #June 1985 - May 1988, student, later, faculty member, Army Command and General Staff College,
Fort Leavenworth Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth, Kansas, Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., an ...
, Kansas #May 1988 - May 1992, F-15 instructor pilot, Chief of Standardization and Evaluation, and operations officer, 426th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron, later, Commander, 555th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron, later, Commander, 58th Operations Support Squadron, Luke AFB, Ariz. #June 1992 - June 1993, Air Combat Command-sponsored research fellow and student, Air War College,
Maxwell AFB Maxwell Air Force Base , officially known as Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base, is a United States Air Force (USAF) installation under the Air Education and Training Command (AETC). The installation is located in Montgomery, Alabama, United States. ...
, Alabama #July 1993 - July 1995, Deputy Commander, later, Commander, 1st Operations Group,
Langley AFB Langley Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in Hampton, Virginia, adjacent to Newport News. It was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the entry of the United States into World War I in April 1 ...
, Virginia #March 1995 - June 1995, J-3, Joint Task Force Southwest Asia, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia #July 1995 - June 1997, Deputy J-3, U.S. Forces Korea, and Assistant Deputy C-3, Republic of Korea/U.S. Combined Forces Command, Yongsan, South Korea #July 1997 - November 1998, Commander, 20th Fighter Wing,
Shaw AFB Shaw Air Force Base (Shaw AFB) is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located approximately west-northwest of downtown Sumter, South Carolina. It is one of the largest military bases operated by the United States, and is under the jurisdict ...
, South Carolina #November 1998 - January 2000, Commander, 31st Fighter Wing and 31st Air Expeditionary Wing,
Aviano AB Aviano Air Base () is a base in northeastern Italy, in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region. It is located in the Aviano municipality, at the foot of the Carnic Pre-Alps or Southern Carnic Alps, about from Pordenone. The Italian Air Force has o ...
, Italy #January 2000 - November 2002, Director of Operational Requirements, Deputy Chief of Staff for Air and Space Operations, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. #December 2002 - July 2003, Director of Operational Capability Requirements, Deputy Chief of Staff for Air and Space Operations, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. (February 2003 - April 2003, Director, U.S. Central Command Air Forces Air Component Coordination Element, Coalition Land Forces Component Headquarters,
Camp Doha Camp Doha was the main U.S. Army base in Kuwait, and played a pivotal role in the U.S. military presence in the Middle East since the 1991 Gulf War and in the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The complex is located on a small peninsula on Kuwait Bay, w ...
, Kuwait) #August 2003 - September 2005, Vice Commander, Air Force Space Command,
Peterson AFB Peterson Space Force Base, previously Peterson Air Force Base, Peterson Field, and Army Air Base, Colorado Springs, is a United States Space Force base that shares an airfield with the adjacent Colorado Springs Municipal Airport and is home t ...
, Colorado #October 2005 - April 2008, Deputy Commander, U.S. Pacific Command, Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii


Flight information


Awards and decorations


Other achievements


Effective dates of promotion


Publications


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leaf, Daniel P. Year of birth missing (living people) Living people United States Air Force personnel of the Iraq War Military personnel from Wisconsin People from Shawano, Wisconsin Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Air Force generals Recipients of the Air Medal United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal