Anthony J. Cotton

Anthony J. Cotton
Anthony J. Cotton
	Official portrait, 2021
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Air Force
Years of service	1986–present
Rank	General
Commands held	Air Force Global Strike Command; Air University; Twentieth Air Force; 45th Space Wing; 341st Missile Wing; 45th Operations Group
Awards	Air Force Distinguished Service Medal; Defense Superior Service Medal (2); Legion of Merit (2)

Anthony James Cotton[1] is a United States Air Force four-star general who has served as the commander of the Air Force Global Strike Command since August 27, 2021. He most recently served as the deputy commander of the Air Force Global Strike Command.[2] Prior to that, he was the president of the Air University.[3][4] In June 2021, he was nominated and in July confirmed for promotion to general and assignment as the next commander of the Air Force Global Strike Command, succeeding Timothy Ray.[5][6]

Cotton is from Dudley, North Carolina, where he graduated from Southern Wayne High School in 1981. He is the son of James H. and Amy K. Cotton; his father was a chief master sergeant in the Air Force.[7] Anthony Cotton was commissioned through ROTC at North Carolina State University in 1986, where he also earned a bachelor's degree in political science.[7] Prior to his AFGSC service, Cotton commanded the 20th Air Force, served as deputy director of the National Reconnaissance Office, and was senior military assistant to the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence.[8]

Awards and decorations

Gen. Cotton, right, incoming Air Force Global Strike Command commander, receives the guidon from Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. CQ Brown, Jr., left, during the AFGSC change of command ceremony at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, August 27, 2021.

	Command Space Operations Badge
	Command Missile Operations Badge
	Office of the Secretary of Defense Identification Badge
	Headquarters Air Force Badge

	Air Force Distinguished Service Medal with one bronze oak leaf cluster
	Defense Superior Service Medal with one bronze oak leaf cluster
	Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster
	Defense Meritorious Service Medal
	Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters
	Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
	Air Force Achievement Medal with oak leaf cluster
	Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with one silver and two bronze oak leaf clusters
	Air Force Organizational Excellence Award
	National Reconnaissance Office Distinguished Service Medal (Gold Medal)
	Combat Readiness Medal with oak leaf cluster
	National Defense Service Medal with one bronze service star
	Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
	Air and Space Campaign Medal
	Nuclear Deterrence Operations Service Medal with "N" device
	Air Force Longevity Service Award with one silver and two bronze oak leaf clusters
	Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon with service star
	Air Force Training Ribbon

Effective dates of promotions

Cotton is pinned with his four-star rank insignia by his family at his promotion ceremony, August 27, 2021.


Rank	Date[2]
Second lieutenant	June 7, 1986
First lieutenant	June 7, 1988
Captain	June 7, 1990
Major	March 1, 1998
Lieutenant colonel	March 1, 2002
Colonel	December 1, 2006
Brigadier general	November 10, 2011
Major general	July 6, 2015
Lieutenant general	February 15, 2018
General	August 27, 2021[9]

References

This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Government.

https://ocr.lib.ncsu.edu/ocr/LD/LD3928-A23-1985-1986/LD3928-A23-1985-1986.pdf
"Lieutenant General Anthony J. Cotton (USAF)". United States Air Force. 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
Harper, Brad (12 December 2019). "Air University leader has been nominated for Air Global Strike Command position in Louisiana". Montgomery Advertiser. Retrieved 7 September 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
Ramsouer, Tammie (15 February 2018). "Lt. Gen. Cotton assumes command of Air University". Maxwell Air Force Base. Archived from the original on 12 June 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
"PN741 – Lt. Gen. Anthony J. Cotton – Air Force, 117th Congress (2021–2022)". U.S. Congress. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
Cohen, Rachel (24 June 2021). "Cotton nominated to run Air Force's nuclear enterprise at pivotal time". Military Times. Retrieved 25 June 2021.
Calkins, Christopher (30 August 2011). "Cotton: Stay sharp; Our mission demands it". 45th Space Wing Public Affairs, Air Force Space Command. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
Leishman, Angeline (28 June 2021). "Lt. Gen. Anthony Cotton Nominated to Lead AF Global Strike Command". executivegov.com. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
"General Anthony Cotton".

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[1] ttps://ocr.lib.ncsu.edu/ocr/LD/LD3928-A23-1985-1986/LD3928-A23-1985-1986.pdf

[biography-2] "Lieutenant General Anthony J. Cotton (USAF)". United States Air Force. 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.

[3] Harper, Brad (12 December 2019). "Air University leader has been nominated for Air Global Strike Command position in Louisiana". Montgomery Advertiser. Retrieved 7 September 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

[4] Ramsouer, Tammie (15 February 2018). "Lt. Gen. Cotton assumes command of Air University". Maxwell Air Force Base. Archived from the original on 12 June 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2020.

[5] "PN741 – Lt. Gen. Anthony J. Cotton – Air Force, 117th Congress (2021–2022)". U.S. Congress. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2021.

[6] Cohen, Rachel (24 June 2021). "Cotton nominated to run Air Force's nuclear enterprise at pivotal time". Military Times. Retrieved 25 June 2021.

[2011afsc-7] Calkins, Christopher (30 August 2011). "Cotton: Stay sharp; Our mission demands it". 45th Space Wing Public Affairs, Air Force Space Command. Retrieved 10 October 2021.

[8] Leishman, Angeline (28 June 2021). "Lt. Gen. Anthony Cotton Nominated to Lead AF Global Strike Command". executivegov.com. Retrieved 29 June 2021.

[9] "General Anthony Cotton".