David Frederic Melcher is an American businessman and retired U.S. Army

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

. He is known for his 32 years of

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

Service, and as a prominent figure in the aerospace and defense community as the President and CEO of

Fortune 500 The ''Fortune'' 500 is an annual list compiled and published by ''Fortune (magazine), Fortune'' magazine that ranks 500 of the largest United States Joint-stock company#Closely held corporations and publicly traded corporations, corporations by ...

Company Exelis from 2011 to 2015, and as the former president and CEO of

Aerospace Industries Association The Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) – originally the Aeronautical Chamber of Commerce (1922-1945), then Aircraft Industries Association (1945-1960)

from 2015 to 2017.

Early and personal life

Melcher was born in

Allentown, Pennsylvania Allentown (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Allenschteddel'', ''Allenschtadt'', or ''Ellsdaun'') is a city in eastern Pennsylvania, United States. The county seat of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh County, it is the List o ...

in 1954. Growing up in a middle-class family, Melcher was a student athlete and band member. Upon graduation from High School, he was selected to attend the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

at West Point. There, Melcher continued his interest in intramural sports while studying Civil Engineering. Melcher married his wife Marla in 1976, with whom he has two children.

Military career

Beginning his military career at West Point, Melcher completed his degree in 1976 and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Army Corps of Engineers. He later earned an M.B.A. degree from the

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate school, graduate business school of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university. Located in Allston, Massachusetts, HBS owns Harvard Business Publishing, which p ...

in 1983 and an M.P.A. degree from

Shippensburg University Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania (Ship or SU) is a public university in the Shippensburg, Pennsylvania area. It is part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. Founded in 1871, it later became the first teachers' college ...

. During his 32 years of service, he commanded at the Battalion, Brigade, and Army Corps of Engineers Division level. As Commanding General of the Army Corps of Engineers, Southwestern Division, Melcher oversaw the construction, maintenance, and oversight of military infrastructure in six states in the American southwest. For his work in this position, he was awarded the

Army Distinguished Service Medal The Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a military decoration of the United States Army that is presented to soldiers who have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility. ...

. Melcher's most prominent staff assignments included a White House Fellowship with the

Office of Management and Budget The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is the largest office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States (EOP). The office's most prominent function is to produce the president's budget, while it also examines agency pro ...

under President Ronald Reagan and as the Army's Military Deputy for Budget, and Army Deputy Chief of Staff for Programs (G-8). As the Army G-8, Melcher was an advocate for the business transformation of the Army, promoting private sector solutions for Army management. Melcher spent 12 of his 32 years of service assigned to the Pentagon, which was his final assignment before retirement. In 2008, Melcher retired from the Army at the rank of

Exelis

Upon retirement from the Army, Melcher joined

ITT Inc ITT Inc., formerly ITT Corporation, is an American worldwide manufacturing company based in Stamford, Connecticut. The company produces specialty components for the aerospace, transportation, energy and industrial markets. ITT's three businesse ...

. where he was soon named president of its defense division, ITT Defense. In 2011, ITT Defense was spun-off as

Exelis Inc ''Exelis'' is a genus of moths in the family Geometridae erected by Achille Guenée Achille Guenée (sometimes M.A. Guenée; 1 January 1809 – 30 December 1880) was a French lawyer and entomologist. Biography Achille Guenée was born in Char ...

. during a split-up of ITT Inc. Melcher was subsequently named as the newly independent company's first President and CEO. Exelis prospered under his leadership, becoming a Fortune 500 Company upon its IPO. During this time, Melcher was a notable voice for a resurgent defense industry following the 2011 Defense Draw-down, being named as Washington's Top 100 executives in 2013, 2014 and 2016. In 2014 Melcher was recognized by the Association of the United States Army with the John W. Dixon award for his significant contribution to the American defense industry. Under Melcher, the company established the Exelis Action Corps, which utilized Exelis employee volunteers to service members, veterans and their families. ITT Exelis was sold to the

Harris Corporation Harris Corporation was an American technology company, defense contractor, and information technology service (economics), services provider that produced wireless equipment, tactical radios, electronic systems, night vision device, night visi ...

in May 2015 for $4.56 Billion.

Aerospace Industries Association

In June 2015, Melcher was selected to be the President and CEO of

Aerospace Industries Association of America Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial, and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and astro ...

(AIA), a non-profit Aerospace and Defense Trade Association. He replaced former AIA CEO

Marion Blakey Marion Clifton Blakey (born March 26, 1948) is an American businesswoman and former government official who served as president and CEO of Rolls-Royce North America. Prior to joining Rolls-Royce, she served as the eighth full-time chief executive ...

, who had held that position for seven years. At AIA, Melcher is a nationally respected advocated within the aerospace and defense community on industry issues, including defense budgets, FAA NextGen, and American space competitiveness. As CEO, Melcher was named by The Hill as being in Washington's top 100 lobbyists in 2016 and 2017. In 2017, Melcher announced his retirement from AIA effective December 31 of that year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Melcher, David 1954 births Living people United States Military Academy alumni Harvard Business School alumni Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania alumni Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Army generals Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Military personnel from Allentown, Pennsylvania