ARLINGTON, Va. – President Obama has nominated the adjutant general of the Vermont National Guard as the next deputy commander of U.S. Northern Command, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta announced today.
If confirmed, Air Force Maj. Gen. Michael Dubie would be the third National Guard general officer to be assigned as deputy commander of the combatant command.
Dubie also is nominated for appointment to the rank of lieutenant general and for assignment as vice commander, U.S. Element, North American Aerospace Defense Command, the Defense Department announced.
Dubie has served as the adjutant general of the Vermont National Guard since 2006. Highlights of his tenure included the overseas deployment of large numbers of Vermont Guard members, the Vermont Air Guard’s selection as a preferred site for the F-35 Lightning II multirole fighter jet and Vermont’s recovery from last year’s Hurricane Irene, in which the National Guard played a significant role.
The nomination has been sent to the U.S. Senate for confirmation.
Created in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, NORTHCOM’s key homeland defense and defense support of civil authorities missions match key National Guard missions. It is co-located with NORAD at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colo.
The first National Guard general officer to serve as deputy commander at NORTHCOM was retired Army Lt. Gen. H Steven Blum, a former chief of the National Guard Bureau. His successor was Army Lt. Gen. Frank Grass, whose previous assignments had included deputy director of the Army National Guard.
As Vermont’s adjutant general, Dubie serves as the senior uniformed officer in the state responsible for the organization, training and equipage of nearly 4,000 members of the Vermont Army and Air National Guard.
Dubie began his military career in 1979 in the Army Reserve Officer Training Corps program at the University of Vermont and simultaneously joined the 150th Aviation Battalion in the Army National Guard.
He was commissioned as a second lieutenant, Armor Branch, in 1981 and later transferred to the Vermont Air National Guard. Dubie held a variety of command, supervisory and staff positions at the 158th Fighter Wing and Vermont Joint Force Headquarters.
Dubie commanded the 447th Air Expeditionary Group at the Baghdad International Airport and served as director of staff for the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing, Balad Air Base, Iraq.