- - Trump taps retiring fighter pilot Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach to lead the Air Force

Davis Winkie and Bart Jansen, USA TODAY October 2, 2025 at 3:24 AM

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President Donald Trump nominated a nearly retired four-star general and fighter pilot to serve as the Air Force's chief of staff, the service announced Sept. 30.

Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach, whose fighter pilot experience includes the F-15, the F-16 and F-22, last served as commander of the Air Force's influential Air Combat Command, which includes more than 1,600 aircraft and 155,000 troops, before his retirement ceremony in August.

Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach briefs subordinate squadron commanders and their spouses during a course at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, May 21, 2021.

He is the second general Trump has pulled out of retirement for a high-profile role: Air Force Gen. and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Dan Caine was called to active duty from retirement for his current position. Wilsbach technically will not need to be recalled to active duty for the job, though, because he was still on pre-retirement leave, according to Defense News.

Wilsbach previously commanded U.S. air assets across the Pacific, served a stint as deputy commander of U.S. and UN troops in South Korea, and directed U.S. Central Command's initial response to ISIS as the CENTCOM operations chief from 2014 to 2016.

Then-Lt. Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach greets President Donald Trump on the flightline at Osan Air Base, South Korea, June 29, 2019. Wilsbach, who graduated with a broadcast communications degree from the University of Florida in 1985, is nominated to be the Air Force's 24th Chief of Staff. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. James L. Miller)

The four-star general, if confirmed, succeeds Gen. David Allvin, the service's outgoing top officer. Allvin abruptly announced his early retirement in August, just two years into his four-year term, amid internal strife over his push to reorganize the way the Air Force deploys and fights.

Wilsbach was selected for the chief position over other officers such as Gen. Thomas Bussiere, who oversaw the service's nuclear missiles and strategic bomber fleet. Bussiere, who Trump initially nominated over the summer to become the service's vice chief of staff, saw his nomination withdrawn in August and retired Oct. 1.

During the latter portion of his tenure at Air Combat Command in 2024, Wilsbach launched a crackdown on beard-shaving waivers and uniform standards. Those initiatives, started under the previous administration, align well with current Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's policy priorities.

In a press release, Wilsbach said that as chief he plans "to strengthen our warrior ethos and to build a more lethal force that is always ready to defend our homeland and deter our adversaries around the world." He added that he and his spouse have "always prioritized the needs of our Airmen."

Wilsbach's wife, Cynthia Wilsbach, has served on Trump's White House communications staff in both of his presidential administrations.

Cynthia Wilsbach was employed as a senior writer for presidential correspondence at the time of a July 1 report to Congress, and records indicate she held the same role during Trump's first administration. (The White House acknowledged but did not answer a query from USA TODAY about her current employment status.)

Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach and his wife Cynthia Wilsbach arrive at the residence of Japanese Ambassador to the United States Shigeo Yamada in Washington, D.C., Oct. 21, 2024.

Both the Senate Armed Services Committee and the full Senate will need to approve Wilsbach's nomination before he officially becomes the Air Force chief.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump nominates Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach as Air Force chief of staff

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