Pierre St-Amand

Pierre St-Amand
Born	La Sarre, Abitibi-Ouest Regional County Municipality, Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Quebec, Canada
Allegiance	Canada
Service/branch	Royal Canadian Air Force
Years of service	1981-present
Rank	Lieutenant general
Commands held	441 Tactical Fighter Squadron 4 Wing Cold Lake 1 Canadian Air Division
Awards	Commander of the Order of Military Merit[1] Canadian Forces Decoration Alberta Centennial Medal

Joseph Pierre Julien St-Amand CMM CD is a Royal Canadian Air Force Lieutenant general. St-Amand is the current deputy commander of North American Aerospace Defense Command and leads its Canadian Element.^[2] He commanded 441 Tactical Fighter Squadron, 4 Wing, and 1 Canadian Air Division.^[3] Between 2010 and 2011 St-Amand was SHAPE Director of Strategic Planning. During his tenure he oversaw strategic planning for Operation Unified Protector.

Biography

St. Amand was born in La Sarre.^[4] In 1980 he graduated from Cite Etudiante Polyno in La Sarre.^[5]

St-Amand joined the Canadian Armed Forces in June 1981 and graduated from the Royal Military College of Canada in 1986 with a Bachelor Degree in Electrical Engineering. He received pilot training and completed the CF-18 advanced fighter pilot course in fall 1988. Between 1989 and 1992 St-Amand served as an operational fighter pilot with 433 Tactical Fighter Squadron. Until the summer of 1999, he was an instructor and Operational Test and Evaluation pilot with 410 Tactical Fighter Operational Training Squadron.^[6]

In 1999, St-Amand attended and graduated from the Canadian Forces Command Staff College. He was posted to Directorate Aerospace Requirements 5 (Fighters and Trainers) at National Defense Headquarters. St-Amand was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel in 2001 and became Project Director for CF-18 Modernization.^[6]

St-Amand commanded 441 Tactical Fighter Squadron between 2003 and 2005. He attended and graduated from the Air War College with a Masters degree in Strategic Studies and a certificate of Practitioner of Joint Warfare. In 2005 and was promoted to colonel. St-Amand became Combined Forces Air Component Commander Forward in 2006. In 2007, he became commander of 4 Wing. In 2009, St-Amand became Senior Advisor to the Chief of the Defense Staff. He received the Alberta Centennial Medal in May 2009.^[7] In January 2010 he became Director of Strategic Plans at NATO headquarters and was promoted to Brigadier general. During his tenure at SHAPE, St-Amand directed strategic planning for NATO's 2010 Pakistan floods relief operation and Operation Unified Protector.^[6]

In July 2011 he returned to Canada and became deputy commander of 1 Canadian Air Division. In September 2012, he was appointed commander of 1 Canadian Air Division/Canadian NORAD Region. In 2014, St-Amand was made a Commander of the Order of Military Merit.^[8] St-Amand became Director of Operations at NORAD Headquarters in July 2014. On 1 July 2015 he was promoted to lieutenant general and became deputy commander of NORAD and commander of NORAD Canadian Element.^[2]

References

1. "Honours & Recognition for the Men and Women of the Canadian Armed Forces 2014" (PDF). Directorate of Honours and Recognition. 31 March 2015. Retrieved 24 July 2016.
2. "Lieutenant-General Pierre St-Amand, CMM, CD". www.norad.mil. NORAD. July 2015. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
3. "Major General JJP [sic] St-Amand - Commander 1 Canadian Air Division (Departing)". forces.gc.ca. Canadian Forces. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
4. Gemme, Marc-André (20 March 2016). "Pierre St-Amand : un Lasarrois commandant adjoint du NORAD" [Pierre St-Amand: Lasarrois NORAD Deputy Commander]. La Frontière et Le Citoyen (in French). Retrieved 18 July 2016.
5. "Pierre St-Amand | LinkedIn". www.linkedin.com. Archived from the original on 2 September 2016. Retrieved 2016-07-18.
6. "1 Canadian Air Division Commander". Royal Canadian Air Force. 11 July 2013. Archived from the original on 4 March 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
7. "Community Development: Centennial Medal Recipients" (PDF). Alberta Gazette. 102 (9). 15 May 2009. p. 362. Retrieved 2 September 2016.
8. "Honours & Recognition for the Men and Women of the Canadian Armed Forces 2014" (PDF). Directorate of Honours and Recognition. 31 March 2015. Retrieved 24 July 2016.