Ronald J. Bath | |
Birth Name: | Ronald Jay Bath |
Birth Date: | 4 November 1944[1] |
Birth Place: | Nevada, U.S. |
Serviceyears: | 1968 - 2006 |
Rank: | Major general |
Unit: | Nevada Air National Guard |
Battles: | Persian Gulf War |
Laterwork: | RJBath Group |
Ronald Jay Bath (born November 4, 1944) is a retired United States Air Force major general who directed U.S. Air Force Strategic Planning for the service's Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans and Programs at service headquarters in the Pentagon.
Bath's prior assignment was as director, Quadrennial Defense Review and Defense Integration. The Defense Integration Office was established to prepare and represent the Air Force in the QDR and the follow-on actions, including the Defense Planning Guidance within the Office of the U.S. Secretary of Defense.
Bath began his military career in 1968 as a boiler operator and heating specialist in the enlisted ranks of the Nevada Air National Guard. During the 1997 QDR, he was the Air National Guard assistant to the director for the Air Force effort. Bath was one of 16 senior military officers representing the four services and the single National Guard officer assigned as professional staff to the 1995 congressionally mandated Commission on Roles and Missions of the Armed Forces. Having been a traditional guardsman and air technician, Bath is a command pilot with more than 3,500 flying hours in the RF-101 and RF-4 Phantom II. He flew 31 combat missions in Operation Desert Storm, during the Persian Gulf War.
Air Force Distinguished Service Medal | |
Defense Superior Service Medal | |
Distinguished Flying Cross | |
Meritorious Service Medal | |
Air Medal with three bronze oak leaf clusters | |
Aerial Achievement Medal | |
Air Force Commendation Medal with bronze oak leaf cluster | |
Air Force Achievement Medal | |
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Valor device and silver oak leaf cluster | |
Air Force Organizational Excellence Award with bronze oak leaf cluster | |
Combat Readiness Medal with silver oak leaf cluster | |
Air Reserve Forces Meritorious Service Medal | |
National Defense Service Medal with bronze service star | |
Southwest Asia Service Medal with two bronze service stars | |
Air Force Overseas Short Tour Service Ribbon | |
Air Force Longevity Service Award with bronze oak leaf cluster | |
Armed Forces Reserve Medal with bronze hourglass and M device | |
Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon with bronze service star | |
Air Force Training Ribbon | |
Kuwait Liberation Medal (Saudi Arabia) | |
Kuwait Liberation Medal (Kuwait) | |
Major general | April 1, 2002 | |
Brigadier general | July 1, 1999 | |
Colonel | December 23, 1994 | |
Lieutenant colonel | June 14, 1987 | |
Major | March 18, 1983 | |
Captain | March 18, 1976 | |
First lieutenant | March 18, 1972 | |
Second lieutenant | March 18, 1969 | |
Bath retired in November 2007 and formed the RJBath Group, specializing in classified and unclassified defense analysis consulting.