The Secretary of Defense of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting a Second Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of a Third Award of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal to General Ralph Edward Eberhart, United States Air Force, for exceptionally meritorious and distinguished service contributing to national security and defense, in a position of great responsibility to the Government of the United States, as Commander, North American Aerospace Defense Command and United States Northern Command, from April 2002 to November 2004. During this period, the outstanding leadership and professionalism of General Eberhart resulted in major contributions to the security of the United States and Canada. Following the attacks of 11 September 2001, General Eberhart transformed NORAD’s role in the defense of North America. As the first Commander of USNORTHCOM, he stood up the Command responsible for protecting the Nation’s homeland and developed critical relationships throughout the DoD and the interagency community to perform this vital mission. His leadership enabled USNORTHCOM to reach full operational capability ahead of schedule, play an unprecedented role supporting National Special Security Events, and direct the military response to multiple disasters. The distinctive accomplishments of General Eberhart culminate a long and distinguished career in the service of his country and reflect great credit upon himself, the United States Air Force, and the Department of Defense.
Sponsored by:
Awards Received
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Distinguished Flying Cross
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Air Force Distinguished Service Medal
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Legion of Merit
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Legion of Merit
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Defense Distinguished Service Medal
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Defense Distinguished Service Medal
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Air Force Distinguished Service Medal
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Distinguished Flying Cross
(Citation Needed) – SYNOPSIS: The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 2, 1926, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to First Lieutenant Ralph Edward Eberhart, United States Air Force, for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight. His devotion to duty and courage under all conditions serve as an inspiration to his fellow flyers. His actions reflect the highest credit upon himself and the Armed Forces of the United States.
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Air Force Distinguished Service Medal
Service:
United States Air ForceRank:
GeneralAction Date:
February 18, 2000 – April 19, 2002
Department of the Air Force, Special Order G-166 (April 17, 2002)The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting a Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of a Second Award of the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal to General Ralph Edward Eberhart, United States Air Force, for exceptionally meritorious and distinguished service in a position of great responsibility to the Government of the United States. General Eberhart distinguished himself s Commander, Air Force Space Command, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, from 18 February 2000 to 19 April 2002. During this time, General Eberhart led the Nation’s military space force through unprecedented change with a steady hand and steadfast purpose. His leadership, vision and character inspired his command to unparalleled levels of performance and achievement. Most notably, General Eberhart spearheaded United States and Department of Defense efforts to restore and revitalize spacelift operations. Since early 2000, Air Force Space Command has maintained 100 percent success rate for all military launches. Additionally, General Eberhart’s operational expertise and direction served as the foundation for the command’s unprecedented support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM. His leadership and advocacy ensured America’s fighting forces have access to the full range of space capabilities in the global war against terrorism. Under General Eberhart’s stewardship, Air Force Space Command charged ahead in implementing the Space Commission’s recommendations. He orchestrated the organizational realignment to make the Space and Missile Center a key part of the Air Force Space Command team. The consolidation of space research, development, acquisitions and operations created an innovative center of advocacy to better meet warfighter requirements. Toward this end, General Eberhart also championed the continued integration of space-based capabilities into war games, modeling and simulation, and experiments, thus broadening the understanding of space systems and their importance to the warfighter. Finally, under his guidance, Air Force Space Command maintained the security and readiness of our vital land-based, nuclear deterrent force, with an average intercontinental ballistic missile alert rate of over 99 percent. General Eberhart’s actions over the past twenty-six months have set military space and missiles on a course that will ensure our Nation’s security for years to come. The singularly distinctive accomplishments of General Eberhart reflect the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.
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Legion of Merit
(Citation Needed) – SYNOPSIS: The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, 20 July 1942, takes pleasure in presenting a Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of a Second Award of the Legion of Merit to General Ralph Edward Eberhart, United States Air Force, for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services to the Government of the United States. The singularly distinctive accomplishments of General Eberhart and his dedicated contributions in the service of his country reflect the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.
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Legion of Merit
(Citation Needed) – SYNOPSIS: The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, 20 July 1942, takes pleasure in presenting the Legion of Merit to General Ralph Edward Eberhart, United States Air Force, for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services to the Government of the United States. The singularly distinctive accomplishments of General Eberhart and his dedicated contributions in the service of his country reflect the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.
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Defense Distinguished Service Medal
Service:
United States Air ForceRank:
Major GeneralAction Date:
January 24, 1994 – April 28, 1995
The Secretary of Defense of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Defense Distinguished Service Medal to Major General Ralph Edward Eberhart, United States Air Force, for exceptionally distinguished achievement as Director, Force Structure, Resources, and Assessment, The Joint Staff, from 24 January 1994 to 28 April 1995. General Eberhart’s vision and dynamic leadership enabled him to quickly build a relatively new organization into a substantial contributor in developing Department of Defense (DoD) requirements, programs and budgets. He provided genuine joint military perspective on resource allocation issues confronting DoD, fulfilling the intent of the Goldwater-Nichols legislation. Hid direction and guidance were instrumental in developing the new Joint Warfighting Capabilities Assessment process to improve the linkages between warfighting requirements and budget decisions. He integrated the Commanders in Chief more fully into the PPBS decision-making cycle through an exhaustive series of visits and meetings. His improvement initiatives contributed to the substantial strides in effective Office of the Secretary of Defense-Joint Staff collaboration made over the past few years. General Eberhart consistently provided sound advice on all resource and planning issues to the Chairman and the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The distinctive accomplishments of General Eberhart reflect great credit upon himself, the United States Air Force, and the Department of Defense.
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Defense Distinguished Service Medal
Service:
United States Air ForceRank:
Lieutenant GeneralAction Date:
June 1996 – June 1997
The Secretary of Defense of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting a Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of a Second Award of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal to Lieutenant General Ralph Edward Eberhart, United States Air Force, for exceptionally meritorious and distinguished service contributing to national security and defense, in a position of great responsibility to the Government of the United States, as Commander, United States Forces, Japan, and Commander, FIFTH Air Force, from June 1996 to June 1997. Throughout this period, General Eberhart made major contributions to the Unites States-Japan security relationship and the Asia-Pacific region. Through his close rapport with key Japanese military and civilian leaders, he was directly responsible for enhancing and expanding United States-Japan cooperative defense efforts, improving bilateral planning, and furthering mutual understanding and cooperation between the United States and Japan. General Eberhart’s keen diplomatic and leadership skills provided the environment for the success of the Special Action Committee on Okinawa. His recommendations to the Security Consultative Committee on ways to consolidate, realign and reduce United States facilities and areas in Japan further strengthened the United States-Japan alliance. General Eberhart’s guidance and insight ensured that United States-Japan military exercises focused on mission training objectives and demonstrated the United States’ resolve and commitment to the defense of Japan. His enactment of the Mid-Term Exercise Concept with the Japan Joint Staff Office allows senior United States and Japanese leaders to integrate training more efficiently. This concept fostered an unprecedented degree of cooperation between United States and Japanese military forces, demonstrated by the increased sophistication of the bilateral KEEN EDGE exercise program. His leadership, foresight and perseverance have been singularly responsible for making the United States Forces, Japan a more effective instrument of national policy. The distinctive accomplishments of General Eberhart reflect great credit upon himself, the United States Air Force, and the Department of Defense.
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Air Force Distinguished Service Medal
Service:
United States Air ForceRank:
Major GeneralAction Date:
February 11, 1991 – January 23, 1994
Department of the Air Force, Special Order GB-186 (April 1, 1994)The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal to Major General Ralph Edward Eberhart, United States Air Force, for exceptionally meritorious and distinguished service in a position of great responsibility to the Government of the United States. General Eberhart distinguished himself as Director, Programs and Evaluation, Headquarters United States Air Force, the Pentagon, Washington, District of Columbia, from 11 February 1991 to 23 January 1994. In this important assignment, General Eberhart was a valued leader during a time of historic change. While establishing the Programs and Evaluation Directorate, he anticipated the fast-paced nature of post-Cold War fiscal challenges, he revamped how the Air Staff develops its programs–making it more streamline and giving the Secretary and Chief of Staff of the Air Force a range of decision options. These reforms were tested in two programming cycles and a time-compressed Budget Adjustment for the new Administration. The result was an Air Force resource allocation process that was more responsive, rational, and relevant. General Eberhart was a major player behind several initiatives: crafting the Air Force input to the Bottom-Up Review, representing the Air Force in the National Performance Review, developing an Air Force organizational blueprint, and building a Core Air Force model to assess force structure. Despite unprecedented challenges, his tenacity ensured a ready-to-fight, quality Air Force program. The singularly distinctive accomplishments of General Eberhart reflect the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.