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The rank of general (or full general, or four-star general), ranks above lieutenant general (three-star general) and is the highest rank achievable in the United States Space Force.

There have been five four-star generals in the history of the U.S. Space Force. All achieved that rank while on active duty. Generals entered the Space Force via several paths: Two were commissioned via the U.S. Air Force Academy (USAFA) and three were commissioned via the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC).

List of generals

The following lists of four-star generals are sortable by last name, date of rank. The date listed is that of the officer's first promotion to general, and may differ from the officer's entry in the U.S. Space Force register. The year commissioned is taken to be the year the officer was commissioned which may precede the officer's actual date of commission by up to two years. Each entry lists the general's name, date of rank, active-duty position held while serving at four-star rank, number of years of active-duty service at four-star rank (Yrs), year commissioned and source of commission, number of years in commission when promoted to four-star rank (YC), and other biographical notes.

No.	Name	Date of rank	Position(s)	Yrs.	Commission	YC.	Notes
1	raymondJohn W. Raymond	2016-10-2525 Oct 2016	Commander, Air Force Space Command (COMAFSPC), 2016–2017.^[1] Commander, Air Force Space Command/Joint Force Space Component Commander (COMAFSPC/JFSCC), 2017–2019.^[1] Commander, U.S. Space Command/Commander, Air Force Space Command (CDRUSSPACECOM/COMAFSPC), 2019.^[1] Chief of Space Operations/Commander, U.S. Space Command (CSO/CDRUSSPACECOM), 2019–2020. Chief of Space Operations (CSO), 2020–2022.	6	1984 (AFROTC)	32	(born 1962)^[2]
2	thompsonDavid D. Thompson	2020-10-011 Oct 2020^[3]	Vice Chief of Space Operations (VCSO), 2020–2023.	3	1985 (USAFA)	35	(born 1963)^[2]
3	saltzmanB. Chance Saltzman	2022-11-022 Nov 2022	Chief of Space Operations (CSO), 2022–present.	3	1991 (AFROTC)	31	(born 1969)^[4]
4	guetleinMichael A. Guetlein	2023-12-2121 Dec 2023	Vice Chief of Space Operations (VCSO), 2023–present.	2	1991 (AFROTC)	31	(born 1967)^[5]
5	whitingStephen N. Whiting	2024-01-1010 Jan 2024	Commander, U.S. Space Command (CDRUSSPACECOM), 2024–present.	1	1989 (USAFA)	35	(born 1967)^[6]

History

Four-star positions

2019–present

The modern rank of general was established by the Officer Personnel Act of 1947, which authorized the President to designate certain positions of importance to carry that rank. Officers appointed to such positions bear temporary four-star rank while so serving, and are allowed to retire at that rank if their performance is judged satisfactory.^[7] The total number of active-duty four-star generals in the Space Force is limited to a fixed percentage of the number of Space Force general officers serving at all ranks.^[8]

Within the Space Force, the chief of space operations (CSO) is a four-star general by statute. Other four-star generals can occupy positions of designated importance; including the vice chief of space operations (VCSO) and the commander of the United States Space Command (USSPACECOM).

The Space Force also competes with the other services for a number of joint four-star positions, such as the chairman (CJCS) and vice chairman (VJCS) of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Other joint four-star positions have included unified combatant commanders, sub-unified combatant commands, and certain NATO staff positions.

Legislation

The following list of Congressional legislation includes major acts of Congress pertaining to appointments to the grade of general in the United States Space Force.

Legislation	Citation	Summary
Act of December 20, 2019 [United States Space Force Act]	133 Stat. 1561 133 Stat. 1563	Redesignated Air Force Space Command as U.S. Space Force. Established chief of space operations with grade of general, who could serve concurrently as commander of U.S. Space Command for one year following the enactment of this Act, without further appointment (John W. Raymond).
Act of December 23, 2022	136 Stat. 2557	Capped Space Force officers in the grade of general at 2, exempting generals assigned to joint duty.

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Held this four-star position(s) while serving in the U.S. Air Force.
^ ^a ^b Served 35 years in the U.S. Air Force before being unilaterally transferred to the Space Force.
^ Thompson's effective date-of-rank is October 1, 2020, which is one day before he assumed the office of vice chief of space operations.
^ Served 29 years in the U.S. Air Force before being unilaterally transferred to the Space Force.
^ Served 30 years in the U.S. Air Force before being unilaterally transferred to the Space Force.
^ Served 31 years in the U.S. Air Force before being unilaterally transferred to the Space Force.
^ 10 USC 601, Positions of importance and responsibility: generals and lieutenant generals; admirals and vice admirals{{citation}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^ 10 USC 525, Distribution of commissioned officers on active duty in general officer and flag officer grades{{citation}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)