General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Paul David Manson (August 20, 1934 – July 1, 2023) was a

Canadian 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 ...

officer,

fighter pilot A fighter pilot or combat pilot is a Military aviation, military aviator trained to engage in air-to-air combat, Air-to-ground weaponry, air-to-ground combat and sometimes Electronic-warfare aircraft, electronic warfare while in the cockpit of ...

and businessman.

Early life and education

Paul David Manson RMC Wall of Honour 2009

Born in

Trail, British Columbia Trail is a city in the western Kootenays region of the British Columbia Interior, Interior of British Columbia, Canada. It was named after the Dewdney Trail, which passed through the area. The town was first called Trail Creek or Trail Creek Lan ...

, Manson attended both

Royal Roads Royal Roads is a roadstead or anchorage located in Strait of Juan de Fuca near the entrance to Esquimalt Harbour in Greater Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. History In 1790, Sub-Lt Don Manuel Quimper of the Spanish navy anchored his ship t ...

and

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 ...

. He was appointed Cadet Wing Commander in both colleges winning the H.E. Sellars Award at Royal Roads and the Sword of Honour at RMC. After graduating from RMC in 1956, he attended Queen's University in Kingston, and received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering in 1957. Manson was a graduate of the Canadian Forces Staff College and attended National Defence College from 1973-1974.

Military career

Manson received his ''

wings A wing is a type of fin that produces both lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-drag ratio, which compares the bene ...

'' in 1957 and subsequently served as a fighter pilot in Germany, France and Canada. He flew the CF-100, F-86 Sabre, the CF-104 Starfighter and the CF-101 Voodoo. He served as Commanding Officer of

441 Tactical Fighter Squadron 441 Tactical Fighter Squadron was a unit of the Canadian Forces. It was originally formed as a unit of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) during the Second World War. The squadron operated the McDonnell Douglas CF-18 Hornet fighter jet from CF ...

before becoming Program Manager of the New Fighter Aircraft Program in 1977, which led to the selection of the

CF-18 Hornet The McDonnell Douglas CF-18 Hornet (official military designation CF-188) is a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) variant of the American McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet fighter aircraft. In 1980, the F/A-18 was selected as the winner of the New ...

.General Paul David Manson, OC, CMM, CD
Royal Military College of Canada He went on to be Commander

1 Canadian Air Group 1 Canadian Air Division (1 Cdn Air Div) () is the operational-level command and control formation of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). Prior to 2006 the official abbreviation for the division was 1 CAD. It is commanded by an air force major-ge ...

in 1980, Commander, Air Command in 1983 and Assistant Deputy Minister in the

Department of National Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divided ...

in 1985. In 1986, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney appointed him Canada's Chief of the Defence Staff, a position he held until his retirement from the military in 1989.

Business career

Following his military service, he was the president of Paramax, a Montreal-based aerospace company, eventually retiring from business as Chairman of

Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American Arms industry, defense and aerospace manufacturer with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta on March 15, 1995. It is headquartered in North ...

Canada in 1997.

Volunteer work

Upon retiring from the business world, Manson worked full-time from 1997 until 2005 as volunteer Chairman of the "Passing the Torch" campaign, which raised $16.5 million in support of the new Canadian War Museum. He was on the Board of Trustees of the Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation from 2000 to 2006, and during that time, he chaired the Canadian War Museum Committee and the Canadian War Museum Building Committee for the new museum, which opened in 2005. He was Chairman of the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada and Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame.

Death

Manson died on July 1, 2023, at the age of 88.

Honours

In 1980, Manson was invested as a Commander of the Order of Military Merit. In 1987 he became an Officer of the Order of St. John, and in 1989 he became a Commander of the United States Legion of Merit. He received the C.D. Howe Award in 1992 "for achievement in the fields of planning, policy-making and leadership in aeronautics and space". In 2002, he was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

for being "an exemplary and inspirational military leader, business executive and volunteer" and for having "served his country with honour and distinction". In 2003, he was a recipient of the

Vimy Award The Vimy Award is an award presented by the Conference of Defence Associations Institute (CDA Institute) to the "Canadian who has made a significant and outstanding contribution to the defence and security of Canada and the preservation of (its) dem ...

, which "recognizes Canadians who have made outstanding commitments to Canadian security and defence and towards preserving our democratic values." In 2009, Manson was added to the Wall of Honour at the Royal Military College of Canada, and in 2018, he was inducted into Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame. General Manson is the recipient of honorary Doctorate of Military Science degrees from both Royal Roads and Royal Military College.

Notes

References

External links

* Archives of Paul David Manso
(Paul D. Manson fonds, R11222)
are held at

Library and Archives Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; ) is the federal institution tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is the 16th largest library in the world. T ...

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Manson, Paul David 1934 births 2023 deaths Chiefs of the Defence Staff (Canada) Royal Canadian Air Force officers Canadian Forces Air Command generals Officers of the Order of Canada Royal Military College of Canada alumni Canadian military personnel from British Columbia Commanders of the Order of Military Merit (Canada)