William T. Hobbins

General Tom Hobbins is a retired four-star general with the U.S. Air Force with more than thirty eight years experience with U.S. and allied aviation forces in overseas and domestic environments, and extensive interface and coordination expertise with federal agency executive leaders, senior foreign military and civil leadership. Currently, as a private consultant for large aerospace defense system integrators as well as a member of various boards supporting small companies, he has helped to guide the development of NATO’s C4ISR and Unmanned Aerial Systems Roadmaps.

General Hobbins was the Commander, U.S. Air Forces in Europe; Commander, NATO Allied Air Component Command, Ramstein; and Director, Joint Air Power Competence Centre, Ramstein Air Base, Germany. He had responsibility for Air Force activities in a theater spanning three continents, covering more than 20 million square miles, 93 countries and territories, and possessing one-fourth of the world’s population and about one-third of the world’s Gross Domestic Product.

General Hobbins has commanded a numbered air force, two tactical fighter wings and a composite air group. He has served as the Director of Plans and Operations for U.S. Forces Japan, Director of Plans and Policy for U.S. Atlantic Command, the Director of Operations for U.S. Air Forces in Europe, and as a Deputy Chief of Staff, Headquarters U.S. Air Force.

As the USAFE Director of Operations, General Hobbins was responsible for the planning, beddown and execution of combat forces in Europe for Operation Allied Force (Kosovo War). As 12th Air Force Commander, the 12th Air Force Air Operations Center deployed to Southwest Asia as operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom’s alternate AOC. As Deputy Chief of Staff for Warfighting Integration and the Air Force’s Chief Information Officer, he developed and implemented the Air Force’s C4ISR Roadmap for networks enabling predictive battlespace awareness and targeting.

A command pilot, the General Hobbins has more than 5,100 flying hours, primarily in fighter aircraft.