Army G3 gets fourth star, takes oath as Army vice chief of staff

[darrels joy]

Army G3 gets fourth star, takes oath as Army vice chief of staff

By Joe Burlas

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, July 2, 2004) -- With his two combat veteran sons helping to pin on new stars, Lt. Gen. Richard A. Cody became Gen. Richard A. Cody just minutes before being sworn in as the Army?s 31st vice chief of staff during a Pentagon ceremony July 2.

Cody, who left his position as the G3 on the Army staff to take the Army?s number two top uniformed leader slot, replaced Gen. George W. Casey Jr.

Casey departed the Pentagon in late June for Baghdad and assumed duties there as the top military commander in Iraq as the commanding general of the Multinational Force Iraq a few hours before Cody?s ceremony.

Cody?s sons, Capts. Clint and Tyler Cody, both Apache helicopter pilots who recently returned from Iraq with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assualt), traveled from Fort Campbell, Ky., to attend their father?s promotion and VCSA swearing-in ceremony.

?I never pushed my sons to join the Army -- the fact that they did speaks volumes of the sergeants, warrants officers and officers they?ve come across at the many camps, posts and stations where we have served,? Cody said.

Cody, a 1968 graduate of Montpelier High School, attended the U. S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. where he was commissioned a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army in 1972.

Cody has served the Army in every command and staff position from platoon leader to division commander. His principle assignments include commanding general, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell; assistant division commander (maneuver), 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; and commander, 160th Special Operations Aviation Command, Fort Campbell.

A veteran combat aviator with more than 5,000 hours in numerous military aircraft, Cody commanded the 1st Battalion, Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division during Operations Desert Shield and Storm where he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for destroying two critical enemy radar sites during the opening attack of Desert Storm.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Schoomaker told ceremony attendees that his flight to destroy the radar sites in the early hours of the Gulf War was indicative of Cody?s leadership style -- ?always leading from the front.?

Cody is the recipient of numerous awards and decorations, including the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit (four awards), Distinguished Flying Cross, Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal (four awards), Army Commendation Medal (two awards), and Army Achievement Medal. He has also been awarded the Master Army Aviator Badge and the Air Assault Badge.

A Montpelier, Vt., native, Cody graduated the U.S. Military Academy in 1972. More than a dozen of his classmates attended the ceremony.

Other notable attendees included Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz and singer Wynonna Judd. After thanking Judd for attending his ceremony as a family friend, he said he appreciated even more the fact that she routinely visits Soldiers at Fort Campbell and wounded troops at Walter Reed Medical Center, in Washington, D.C.

As the Army vice chief of staff, Cody will be responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Army and the synchronization of Headquarters, Department of the Army staff.

Based upon his experience as the G3 on the Army staff, Cody said he had never seen that staff work closer on a daily basis ?doing the absolute best for our young warfighter Soldiers.?

Cody said that he missed being a colonel as that is where all the fun is -- with Soldiers.

?The Soldiers in combat today that are getting promoted are much more significant than me pinning on four stars,? Cody said.

Gen. Richard A. Cody waits while his sons, Capt. Clint Cody (left) and Capt. Tyler Cody, both with the 101st Air Borne Division (Air Assault), pin four-stars on his shoulders July 2, 2004, at the Pentagon Auditorium. Shortly thereafter, Cody was sworn-in as the 31st Army Vice Chief of Staff.
Sgt. Reeba Critser