R. Steven Whitcomb (born January 31, 1948) is a retired

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, 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 th ...

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 was commissioned as a second lieutenant upon graduation from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

in 1970. In his final assignment he served as

Inspector General of the United States Army The Office of the Inspector General (OTIG) serves to "provide impartial, objective and unbiased advice and oversight to the Army through relevant, timely, and thorough inspection, assistance, investigations, and training." The position has exi ...

Company grade assignments

Whitcomb served in his first assignment as a rifle and weapons platoon leader in Company C, 2d Battalion, 508th Infantry (Airborne),

82d Airborne Division The 82nd Airborne Division is an Airborne forces, airborne infantry division (military), division of the United States Army specializing in Paratrooper, parachute assault operations into hostile areasSof, Eric"82nd Airborne Division" ''Spec Ops ...

. Branch transferring to Armor, Whitcomb's initial assignments included Commander, Company B, 2d and then 3rd Battalion, 64th Armor, 3rd Infantry Division. Following company command, he served as Assistant Professor of Military Science at

California University of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Western University, California (abbreviated as PennWest California) is a campus of Pennsylvania Western University in California, Pennsylvania, United States. The campus had an enrollment of 2,717 as of fall 2024. Founded in 1852 ...

Field grade assignments

Next assigned to the Republic of Korea, Whitcomb served as S3, 524th Military Intelligence Battalion. Posted to Fort Hood, Texas he served as Deputy G2, 2d Armored Division, and then S3 and XO, 3rd Battalion, 67th Armor, as well as Aide-de-Camp to the Commanding General,

III Corps III or iii may refer to: Companies * Information International, Inc., a computer technology company * Innovative Interfaces, Inc., a library-software company * 3i, formerly Investors in Industry, a British investment company Other uses * I ...

and

Fort Hood Fort Cavazos is a United States Army post located near Killeen, Texas. The post is currently named after Gen. Richard E. Cavazos, a native Texan and the US Army’s first Hispanic four-star general. The post is located halfway between Austi ...

. Whitcomb's next assignment was in Germany, where he commanded the 2d Battalion, 70th Armor, 1st Armored Division, deploying the battalion to combat in

Desert Shield , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

Desert Storm , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

. After battalion command, he served as a staff officer in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans, Headquarters Department of the Army.

Colonel assignments

Whitcomb served as Commander, 2d Brigade, 24th Infantry Division, with elements of the brigade deploying to Somalia and Haiti. Command Sergeants Major Ben Palacios and Joseph John served with him. His follow-on was a second tour at Headquarters, Department of the Army as a director in Force Development followed by service as Executive Officer to the Vice Chief of Staff, Army.

General officer assignments

After completing his tour of duty at Headquarters, Department of the Army, Whitcomb assumed the duties of Assistant Division Commander for Maneuver, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas, deploying with elements of the Division to Bosnia, followed by an assignment as Deputy Commanding General,

Fort Knox Fort Knox is a United States Army installation in Kentucky, south of Louisville and north of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, Elizabethtown. It is adjacent to the United States Bullion Depository (also known as Fort Knox), which is used to house a larg ...

, Kentucky. During his second tour of duty in the

Republic of Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

, Whitcomb served as the C3/J3, United Nations Command, Combined Forces Command,

United States Forces Korea The United States Forces Korea (USFK) is a Unified Combatant Command#Subordinate Unified Command, sub-unified command of United States Indo-Pacific Command, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). USFK was initially established in 1957, and e ...

, and Deputy Commanding General,

Eighth United States Army The Eighth Army is a U.S. field army which commands all United States Army forces in South Korea. It is headquartered at the Camp Humphreys in the Anjeong-ri of Pyeongtaek, Pyeongtaek, South Korea.United States Central Command The United States Central Command (USCENTCOM or CENTCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the United States Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Defense. It was established in 1983, taking over the previous responsibilit ...

, serving as the Chief of Staff, CENTCOM during OIF and OEF. Whitcomb assumed command of Third Army, US Army Central, (CFLCC) Forward Camp Arifjan, Kuwait on October 13, 2004 and ended this tour December 18, 2007. Whitcomb became the 63rd Inspector General of the Army on February 14, 2008. He retired on August 13, 2010.

Education

Whitcomb's education includes the Infantry Officer Basic Course, Counter Intelligence Officer Course, the Armor Advance Course,

Command and General Staff College The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

, and the

U.S. Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a United States Army, U.S. Army staff college in Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, with a Carlisle, Pennsylvania, Carlisle postal address, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle B ...

. His civilian education includes 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 History from the

and a master's degree in education from

Dates of rank

Decorations

Whitcomb has been awarded the following

military decoration Military awards and decorations are distinctions given as a mark of honor for military heroism, meritorious or outstanding service or achievement. A decoration is often a medal consisting of a ribbon and a medallion. Civil decorations award ...

s: *

Defense Distinguished Service Medal ribbon

Defense Distinguished Service Medal The Defense Distinguished Service Medal is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members for exceptionally distinguished performance of duty contributing to the ...

with

oak leaf cluster An oak leaf cluster is a ribbon device to denote preceding decorations and awards consisting of a miniature bronze or silver twig of four oak leaves with three acorns on the stem. It is authorized by the United States Armed Forces for a spec ...

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. ...

with oak leaf cluster *

Defense Superior Service Medal The Defense Superior Service Medal (DSSM) is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members who perform superior meritorious service in a position of significant ...

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

with four oak leaf clusters *

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious a ...

with

Valor device Valor, valour, or valorous may mean: * Courage, a similar meaning * Virtue ethics, roughly "courage in defense of a noble cause" Entertainment * Valor Kand, a member of the band Christian Death * ''Valor'' (TV series), an American drama series ...

and oak leaf cluster * Meritorious Service Medal ribbon

Meritorious Service Medal A Meritorious Service Medal is an award presented to denote acts of meritorious service, and sometimes gallantry, that are worthy of recognition. Notable medals with similar names include: Singapore *Pingat Jasa Gemilang, or Meritorious Services Me ...

with three oak leaf clusters *

Joint Service Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issues its own version of the Commendation Medal, with a fift ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitcomb, R. Steven 1948 births Living people University of Virginia alumni Pennsylvania Western University, California alumni United States Army War College alumni United States Army generals Inspectors general of the United States Army Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal