Brigadier
General R. James Clifft is the assistant adjutant general for air for the state
of South Dakota. As the assistant adjutant general he is directly responsible to
the adjutant general for the operational readiness of the South Dakota Air
National Guard and the unit's ability to perform its' federal and state
missions.
General Clifft earned his degree from Northern State University and joined the South Dakota Air National Guard in 1970. He received his commission in 1971 and completed Pilot Training at Laredo AFB in 1972. General Clifft has served in various assignments within the flying operation to include: Instructor Pilot, Flight Evaluator, Fighter Weapons Instructor, Operations Officer, and F-16 Fighter Squadron Commander. Just some of his many accomplishments include: 26 years of flying the F100, A-7 and F-16; A-7 Flight Instructor and Flight Evaluator; and graduating as the Distinguished Graduate from the A-7 Fighter Weapons Instructor course. As the 175th Fighter Squadron Commander, Gen Clifft led the Squadron through its first F-16 Operational Readiness Inspection, its first European deployment and its first Deployment to Southwest Asia patrolling the no-fly zone in Northern Iraq. General Clifft is a military command pilot with more than 3200 hours of tactical flight time.
1970 Bachelor of arts degree in industrial arts and mathematics, Northern State College, Aberdeen, S.D.
1974 Squadron Officer School, by correspondence
1981 Air Command and Staff College, by correspondence
1984 National Security Management Course, by correspondence
1. September 1971 - August 1972, student, undergraduate pilot training, 38th
Student Squadron, Laredo Air Force Base, Texas
2. August 1972 - March 1973, student, F-100 pilot training, 162nd Tactical Fighter
Group, Tucson, Ariz.
3. March 1973 - November 1978, squadron fighter pilot, 175th Tactical Fighter
Squadron, Sioux Falls, S.D.
4. November 1978 - March 1983, squadron fighter pilot, 175th Tactical Fighter
Squadron, Sioux Falls, S.D.
5. March 1983 - March 1987, asst B flight commander, 175th Tactical Fighter
Squadron, Sioux Falls, S.D.
6. March 1987 - March 1993, operations officer, 175th Tactical Fighter Squadron,
Sioux Falls, S.D.
7. March 1993 - October 1994, commander, 175th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Sioux
Falls, S.D.
8. October 1994 - September 1995, director of operations, Headquarters South
Dakota Air National Guard, Sioux Falls, S.D.
9. September 1995 - October 2002, chief of staff, Headquarters South Dakota
Air National Guard, Sioux Falls, S.D.
10. October 2002 - present, assistant adjutant general for air, South Dakota
Air National Guard, Sioux Falls, S.D.
Rating: Command pilot
Flight hours: More than 3,488
Aircraft flown: T-37, T-38, F-100, A-7 and F-16
Pilot wings from: Laredo Air Force Base, Texas
Legion of Merit
Meritorious Service Medal
Air Medal
Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with four oak leaf clusters
Combat Readiness Medal with seven oak leaf clusters
National Defense Service Medal
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
Southwest Asia Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
Air Force Longevity Service Award with five oak leaf clusters
Armed Forces Reserve Medal with bronze hourglass
Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon
Air Force Training Ribbon
State of South Dakota Distinguished Service Ribbon
State of South Dakota Distinguished Unit Ribbon with oak leaf cluster
State of South Dakota National Guard Service Ribbon with four oak leaf clusters
State of South Dakota Desert Storm Ribbon
General Clifft is a Captain for a major Airline having flown and instructed in the DC9, DC10, 727, A320, and 757. He has amassed more than 6500 hours of civilian flight time resulting in over 9500 hours of total time.
Distinguished graduate, USAF Fighter Weapons Instructor Course
F-16 Fighter squadron commander, led unit's first deployment to southwest Asia
and first F-16 deployment to Europe
Second Lieutenant Mar 8, 1971
First Lieutenant Jul 25, 1973
Captain Aug 11, 1976
Major Jul 22, 1983
Lieutenant Colonel Aug 22, 1987
Colonel Nov 5, 1994
Brigadier General Mar 2,1998
(Current as of February 2006)
The date of publication indicated on this biography reflects the most recent update. It does not necessarily reflect the date of printing.