An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : News : Article View
NEWS | Nov. 18, 2008

Guard's first four-star ready to take Minutemen forward

By Air Force Master Sgt. Mike R. Smith National Guard Bureau

ARLINGTON, Va. - Air Force Gen. Craig R. McKinley officially became chief of the National Guard Bureau (CNGB) and was promoted to the rank of general by Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates in a ceremony today at the Pentagon.

Gates and Navy Adm. Michael G. Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as well as McKinley's wife, daughter and son helped add the fourth star to McKinley's uniform.

The crowd of more than 300 from all ranks, services and many states' National Guards then watched Gates administer the oath of office to McKinley, who swore in as the first four-star general to lead the National Guard in its 372-year history.

"The promotion of Gen. Craig McKinley to this rank, to serve in this post, is in recognition of his outstanding leadership abilities and shows the confidence the president and I have in him to be the nation's senior Guard officer at such a critical time," said Gates.

McKinley succeeds Army LTG H Steven Blum, who served some five and a half years as chief of the Bureau and in January will become deputy commander of U.S. Northern Command, the first Guard officer to hold that position.

McKinley joins the ranks of Army generals George Washington and Ulysses S. Grant, and two other former, four-star officers who served as Guardsmen during their military careers.

"It's a rich and high honor to be the 26th chief of the National Guard Bureau," said McKinley. "I will give it every bit of energy, every bit of heart and soul that I can possess to make sure that our National Guard and our Soldiers and Airmen are well taken care of, and I will work very closely and faithfully with the services."

Of the more than 460,000 Citizen-Soldiers and -Airmen, some 68,000 Army and 5,700 Air Guardmembers were on active duty for Operations Noble Eagle, Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom today. Furthermore, on any given day an average of 17 governors call out their National Guard for a variety of domestic needs.

McKinley is the fourth Air Guard officer to serve as CNGB. He most recently served as director for the Air National Guard. There, he was responsible for policies, plans and programs affecting more than 106,000 Airmen.

Gates credited McKinley for successfully leading the Air Guard during a time of severe manpower reductions and other, major challenges from the Global War on Terrorism, Base Realignment and Closure implementation, budget changes and the transformation of the National Guard from a strategic reserve to an operational force.

McKinley received his Air Force commission in 1974 after graduating from Southern Methodist University in Dallas with a degree in business administration. He holds master's degrees in management and economics and in national security strategy. He is a command pilot with more than 4,000 flight hours.

 

 

Related Articles
U.S. Soldiers with the Army National Guard speak with D.C. locals while patrolling Metro Center Aug 26, 2025. About 2,000 National Guard members are supporting the D.C. Safe and Beautiful mission providing critical support to the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department in ensuring the safety of all who live, work, and visit the District.
Guard Members From Six States, D.C. on Duty in Washington in Support of Local, Fed Authorities
By Sgt. 1st Class Jon Soucy, | Aug. 29, 2025
WASHINGTON – More than 2,000 National Guard Soldiers and Airmen from six states and the District of Columbia are on duty in Washington as part of Joint Task Force – District of Columbia in support of local and federal...

Lt. Gen. H. Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau, Maj. Gen. Russel Honore, Task Force Katrina commander, and Brig. Gen. John Basilica, 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team commander, talk to news media during the aftermath of Hurricane Rita on Sep. 29, 2005. Basilica was appointed commander of Task Force Pelican, responsible for coordinating National Guard hurricane response efforts across the State. The task force included tens of thousands of National Guard Soldiers from Louisiana and other states.
Louisiana Guard’s Tiger Brigade Marks 20th Anniversary of Redeployment and Hurricane Response
By Rhett Breerwood, | Aug. 29, 2025
NEW ORLEANS – This fall, the Louisiana National Guard’s 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, known as the Tiger Brigade, commemorates the 20th anniversary of its redeployment from Iraq in September 2005, coinciding with the...

Alaska Air National Guard HH-60G Pave Hawk aviators and Guardian Angels, assigned to the 210th and 212th Rescue Squadrons, respectively, conduct a hoist rescue demonstration while participating in a multi-agency hoist symposium at Bryant Army Airfield on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, July 22, 2025. The symposium, hosted by Alaska Army National Guard aviators assigned to Golf Company, 2-211th General Support Aviation Battalion, included U.S. Coast Guard crews assigned to Sector Western Alaska and U.S. Arctic out of Air Stations Kodiak and Sitka, Alaska Air National Guardsmen with the 176th Wing rescue squadrons, U.S. Army aviators from Fort Wainwright’s 1-52nd General Support Aviation Battalion, Alaska State Troopers, and civilian search and rescue professional volunteers from the Alaska Mountain Rescue Group. The collaborative training drew on the participants’ varied backgrounds, experiences, and practices, to enhance hoist proficiency and collective readiness when conducting life-saving search and rescue missions in Alaska’s vast and austere terrain. (Alaska Army National Guard photo by Alejandro Peña)
Alaska Air Guard Conducts Multiple Hoist Rescues of Stranded Rafters on Kichatna River
By Staff Sgt. Seth LaCount, | Aug. 29, 2025
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska — Alaska Air National Guard members with the 176th Wing rescued three rafters Aug. 28 after their raft flipped over on the Kichatna River.The Alaska Rescue Coordination Center opened...