Ronald Nels Running (born 1941) is a retired

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

Major General who has more than 3,800 flying hours in F-105D, F-5 A/E, F-4 D/E and F-16A aircraft. This number of flying hours is significantly higher than the level of 3,000 flying hours that the Air Force requires to award its highest ranking of

Command Pilot U.S. Air Force aeronautical ratings are military aviation skill standards established and awarded by the United States Air Force for commissioned officers participating in "regular and frequent flight",The standard by which flight status has be ...

Early life and education

Running is a native of

Frenchtown, Montana Frenchtown is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Missoula County, Montana, United States. It is part of the Missoula metropolitan area. The population was 1,958 as of the 2020 census. History Early settlers gave ...

. When he left his hometown in 1960 to attend the

United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academies, United States service academy in Air Force Academy, Colorado, Air Force Academy Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs, Colorado, Colorado Springs. I ...

, he had never boarded an airplane. He graduated in 1964 with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

in military science. His later education includes time spent at the

Armed Forces Staff College The Joint Forces Staff College (JFSC), located in Norfolk, Virginia, was established as the Armed Forces Staff College in 1946 and incorporated into the National Defense University in August 1981. It educates and acculturates joint and multinat ...

in Norfolk, Virginia, and participation with other senior officials in courses offered by

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

Military career

Running flew 274 combat missions in the F-105 throughout his two

tours of duty For military personnel, a tour of duty is usually a period of time spent in combat or in a hostile environment. In an army, for instance, soldiers on active duty serve 24 hours a day, seven days a week for the length of their service commitment. ...

during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. He then became a member of the flight demonstration team

United States Air Force Thunderbirds The USAF Air Demonstration Squadron is the air demonstration squadron of the United States Air Force The Thunderbirds, as they are popularly known, are assigned to the 57th Wing, and are based at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. Created in 1953 ...

, flying the F-4E. Later, he commanded the

Aggressor Squadron An aggressor squadron or adversary squadron (in the US Navy and USMC) is a squadron that is trained to act as an opposing force in military wargames. Aggressor squadrons use enemy tactics, techniques, and procedures to give a realistic simula ...

Clark Air Base Clark Air Base is a Philippine Air Force base in Luzon, located west of Angeles City, and about northwest of Metro Manila. It was previously operated by the U.S. Air Force and, before that, the U.S. Army, from 1903 to 1991. The base cov ...

, which is in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. At the time of his retirement from the Air Force on August 1, 1997, Running had achieved over 3,800 hours in flight time. He has been honored with many major awards including a Distinguished Flying Cross with six oak leaf clusters, an

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establi ...

with 25 oak leaf clusters, and a

Vietnam Service Medal The Vietnam Service Medal was a military award of the United States Armed Forces established on 8 July 1965 by order of President Lyndon B. Johnson. The medal is awarded to recognize service during the Vietnam War by all members of the U.S. ...

with four bronze stars.

Later in life

In 2003, Running was chosen to lead the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

, from its start in 1950 to its truce in 1953. One of its goals was to bring recognition to the veterans who were often neglected. Running said the events were commemorations, not celebrations, stating: "Commemorate really means remember. We're going to recognize, honor and remember the service provided during the Korean War." Activities took place in both America and South Korea. He resides in

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Virginia. The county is located in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from Washington, D.C., the nati ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Running, Nels 1941 births Living people People from Missoula County, Montana United States Air Force Academy alumni United States Air Force generals United States Air Force personnel of the Vietnam War Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal