| Arthur J. Lichte | |
| Birth Date: | 20 April 1949 |
| Birth Place: | Bronx, New York |
| Allegiance: | United States |
| Branch: | United States Air Force |
| Serviceyears: | 1971–2010 |
| Rank: | General (demoted to Major General) |
| Commands: | |
Arthur James Lichte (born April 20, 1949) is a former four-star general in the United States Air Force, retroactively retired in the grade of major general.
Lichte was born in The Bronx, New York, where he graduated from Cardinal Spellman High School. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from Manhattan College, New York City, in 1971 and his master's degree in systems management from University of Southern California in 1978. He attended Squadron Officer School at Maxwell AFB in Alabama in 1978 and the National War College at Fort Lesley J. McNair in Washington, D.C. in 1989.
In 1994 Lichte attended the Program for Senior Officials in National Security at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 2002 he attended the Revolutions in Business Affairs, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California.
Lichte entered the United States Air Force in 1971 as a distinguished graduate of Manhattan College's Air Force ROTC program. During his Air Force career, Lichte held command positions at squadron, group and wing levels. He is a command pilot with more than 4,000 flying hours in various aircraft, including the C-17, C-20, C-21, C-32, C-37, C-130, EC/RC-121, KC-10, KC-135, UH-1N and VC-137. In addition to his command experience, Lichte held headquarters-level assignments at Strategic Air Command, Air Mobility Command, and United States Transportation Command.
Lichte served as Assistant Vice Chief of Staff and Director, Air Force Staff, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C., where he was responsible for Air Staff organization and administration, served as Deputy Chairman of the Air Force Council, and was the Air Force accreditation official for the Corps of Air Attachés.
Lichte's last military assignment was as the commander of Air Mobility Command based in Scott Air Force Base, Illinois from September 2007 to November 20, 2009. Air Mobility Command's mission is to provide rapid, global mobility and sustainment for America's armed forces. The command also plays a crucial role in providing humanitarian support at home and around the world. The men and women of AMC – active duty, Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve and civilians – provide airlift, aerial refueling, special air mission and aeromedical evacuation for all of America's armed forces.
Lichte retired from the Air Force on January 1, 2010, with over 38 years of military service.[1]
On April 23, 2010, Airbus announced Lichte had joined the board of EADS North America. [2]
In August 2016 it was revealed in Stars & Stripes that Lichte is the subject of a sexual assault investigation being conducted by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations based on claims by one of his former female subordinates.[3] The case was initially reported by John Q. Public, an independent blog that focuses on the Air Force. The blog said it had obtained an internal Air Force document that described a complaint filed earlier this year by a female colonel that her commander had “used his power to coerce sexual contact” three times between April 2007 and April 2009. The report said the senior officer at one point led Air Mobility Command, which has headquarters at Scott Air Force Base, which is about 20 miles east of St. Louis in Illinois.[4] Linda Card, a spokeswoman for the Air Force's Office of Special Investigations, confirmed the investigation of the allegations against Lichte but would not comment further or provide additional details about the case. On completion of the investigation, Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James, issued a letter of reprimand and initiated a board determination of what grade General Lichte had satisfactorily served in prior to his retirement. On 1 February 2017, it was announced the Lichte was retroactively retired in the grade of major general.[5]
| Air Force Distinguished Service Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters | ||
| Defense Superior Service Medal | ||
| Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster | ||
| Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters | ||
| Air Force Achievement Medal | ||
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Valor device and three bronze oak leaf clusters | ||
| Air Force Outstanding Unit Award (Fifth award requires second ribbon due to accouterment spacing) | ||
| Air Force Organizational Excellence Award with oak leaf cluster | ||
| Combat Readiness Medal with three bronze oak leaf clusters | ||
| National Defense Service Medal with two service stars | ||
| Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal with two service stars | ||
| Southwest Asia Service Medal | ||
| Kosovo Campaign Medal with one service star | ||
| Global War on Terrorism Service Medal | ||
| Air Force Longevity Service Award with silver and three bronze oak leaf clusters | ||
| Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon | ||
| Air Force Training Ribbon | ||
| National Order of Merit of France (grade unknown) |