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 ...
in the
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 ...
101st Airborne Division
The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) ("Screaming Eagles") is a light infantry division (military), division of the United States Army that specializes in air assault military operation, operations. The 101st is designed to plan, coordinat ...
from 1987 to 1989.
Early life and education
Born and raised in
Farmville, North Carolina
Farmville is a town in Pitt County, North Carolina, United States, eight miles to the west of Greenville. At the 2020 census, the population was 4,461. Farmville is a part of the Greenville Metropolitan Area located in North Carolina's Inner ...
, Allen graduated from
North Carolina State College
North Carolina State University (NC State, North Carolina State, NC State University, or NCSU) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina sy ...
in June 1958 with a B.S. degree in agricultural education. He was commissioned through the
Army ROTC
The Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (AROTC) is the United States Army component of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps. It is the largest Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program which is a group of college and university-based officer tr ...
program and sent to infantry school and aviation school, graduating from flight training in 1961. Allen later earned an M.A. degree in education from
George Washington University
The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...
. He is also a graduate of the
Army 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
Air War College
The Air War College (AWC) is the senior Professional Military Education (PME) school of the U.S. Air Force. A part of the United States Air Force's Air University (United States Air Force), Air University, AWC emphasizes the employment of air, ...
.
Military career
Allen served three combat tours in
Vietnam
Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
. He was awarded the
Silver Star Medal
The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an ...
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 ...
s and thirty
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 ...
s. Returning to the United States, he served as an aviation battalion commander and then as the aviation group commander for the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) at
Fort Campbell
Fort Campbell is a United States Army installation located astride the Kentucky–Tennessee border between Hopkinsville, Kentucky and Clarksville, Tennessee (post address is located in Kentucky). Fort Campbell is home to the 101st Airborne Div ...
. Allen was a pioneer in the use of night vision goggles for combat aviation.
Approved for promotion to brigadier general on 21 September 1983, he served as chief of the Joint U.S. Military Advisory Group,
Republic of the Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of 7,641 islands, with a total area of roughly 300,000 square kilometers, which ar ...
. While there, he arranged the evacuation of President
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and Kleptocracy, kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the c ...
and his family to
Guam
Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...
on 25 February 1986.
Approved for promotion to major general on 19 June 1986, Allen served as chief of staff,
Second United States Army
Second Army was most recently located at Fort Belvoir, Virginia as a Direct Reporting Unit to Headquarters U.S. Army, Chief Information Officer (CIO)/G-6. Under the CIO/G-6, Second Army served as the single point of contact for Army missions an ...
; commanding general, 101st Airborne Division; and Deputy Inspector General (Inspections), Office of the Inspector General, Department of the Army.
His promotion to lieutenant general was authorized by the
U.S. Senate
The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...
on 22 June 1990. He became director of the Defense Security Assistance Agency on 1 September 1990.
Allen retired from active duty in 1993 after thirty-five years of military service.
Personal
Allen is the son of Ichabod Allen (24 April 1909 – 5 December 1989) and Annie Pearl (Vick) Allen (9 December 1911 – 22 March 1987). They were married in 1929.