Vice Commander of the Myrtle Beach Air Force Base
by Melissa LaScaleia
Reed Street is one of the streets that leads up to the parking lot outside the new Insider and Properties at the Market Common offices. In celebration of our new location, this month, we bring you the history behind the street’s name.
Reed Street is named on behalf of General Robert H. Reed. Robert was born in Elkhorn City, Kentucky, in 1929. He graduated from pilot training as a second lieutenant in 1953, and the following year, was assigned as an F-89D pilot to the 18th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron in Alaska.
He attended Syracuse University, in New York state, and graduated in 1959 with a degree in international relations. In 1965, he received both a master’s degree in public administration from George Washington University, and graduated from Air Command Staff College.
Robert had numerous assignments and positions throughout his military career that took him all over the world. Some of those assignments included: Indiana, South Dakota, British Columbia, New York, California and Washington, D.C., as well as Vietnam.
In 1963, he was assigned as an aide-de-camp to Major General Arthur C. Agan, Jr. at Hancock Field, New York. Upon completion of Air Command and Staff College, he was stationed at Headquarters Air Defense Command, in Colorado. There he served as operations staff officer and assistant executive officer in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff.
Within his illustrious career, he completed F-4 combat crew training to prepare himself for battle in Southeast Asia. He served in the 12th Tactical Fighter Wing, Cam Ranh Bay Air Base, Vietnam, and was the operations officer for the 557th Tactical Fighter Squadron. He spent 305 combat hours in F-4s during the Vietnam War. He returned to the United States in 1969, and after further combat training, became the operations officer for the 84th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, at Hamilton Air Force Base in California.
In April 1974, he was assigned to the U.S. Air Force Six Man Group. This was a special team established by the United States Chief of Staff to act as advisers and educators about all matters pertaining to the development and employment of Air Force forces.
After this one-year term ended, he was assigned to the 354th Tactical Fighter Wing, as vice commander of the Myrtle Beach Air Force Base. In August 1976, he became the base commander.
In September 1984, Robert received a new post as Air Force assistant, vice chief of staff in Washington, D.C. He also served as the Air Force representative for the U.S. Delegation to the Military Staff Committee for the United Nations.
In 1986, he was promoted to general. He has logged 6,100 flying hours.
His military decorations and awards include the Distinguished Service Medal; Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster; Distinguished Flying Cross; Meritorious Service Medal; Air Medal with 10 oak leaf clusters; and Air Force Commendation Medal.
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