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I T E D S T A T E S A I R F O R C E
| BRIGADIER GENERAL
ARTHUR ERNEST EXON Brigadier General Arthur Ernest Exon is director of the defense contract administration services region, Defense Supply Agency, Los Angeles, Calif. General Exon was born in Geddes, S.D., in 1916. He attended high school in Fairfax, S.D. and Southern State Teachers College at Springfield, S.D. He was principal of the Junior High School at Fairfax, S.D. for four years before entering military service in January 1942. In March 1942, General Exon entered aviation cadet training and received his pilot rating in November of the same year. His first duty assignment following flight school was with the 57th Fighter Group in the European-African-Middle Eastern theater of operations. He flew 135 combat missions in Africa, Sicily, Italy, Corsica and Southern France with a total of 325 combat hours. During a mission over Cecina, Italy, in April 1944, his aircraft was severely damaged by an exploding ammunition depot and he was forced to bail out. Captured by the Germans, he remained a prisoner of war until June 1945. In 1948, following completion of a two-year industrial administration course at the Air Force Institute of Technology at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, he was assigned to Air Materiel Command Headquarters, as chief of the Maintenance Data Section. From August 1951 until April 1952, he was deputy director of maintenance engineering at the Middletown Air Materiel Area, Olmsted Air Force Base, Pa. Following two years of duty as deputy for operations for the Far East Logistics Force, Japan, he returned to the United States in July 1954 to attend the Air War College at Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala. He later was assigned to the Pentagon for five years where he held various procurement assignments, among them deputy for procurement and production, deputy chief of staff for materiel. In 1960 he became chief of ballistic missiles within the Directorate of Operations, Headquarters U.S. Air Forces in Europe, and was responsible for establishing the Jupiter Ballistic Missile system for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in Italy and Turkey. He departed Europe in July 1963 for duty as deputy commander, Middletown Air Materiel Area, Olmsted Air Force Base, Pa. In August 1964 he was assigned as commander, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. He assumed duties in January 1966 as director, Defense Contract Administration Services Region, Los Angeles, Calif. His decorations include the Distinguished Service Cross, Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal with 15 oak leaf clusters, Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster, British Distinguished Flying Cross, Croix de Guerre (France), with palm and star. (Current as of Feb. 1, 1968) |