Commissioned as an Infantrymen, General Buck Kernan served in Vietnam as a rifle and Reconnaissance Platoon Leader with the 101st Airborne Division. A distinguished paratrooper and Ranger, he would command paratroopers at all levels in the 82nd Airborne Division, 3rd British Parachute Regiment, and 1st and 2nd Ranger Battalions. In 1989, as the 6th Colonel of the 75th Ranger Regiment, General Kernan led his Rangers in a combat parachute assault into Panama during Operation JUST CAUSE. He would later command the 101st Airborne Division and the XVIII Airborne Corps. As Commander, U.S. Army Joint Forces Command, he oversaw the readiness of all services to respond to the challenges of the Global War on Terrorism. He is a recipient of two awards of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, two awards of the Army Distinguished Service Medal and the Bronze Star Medal w/ V device.
