Charles D. Metcalf

Charles David Metcalf (19 June 1933 – 29 October 2021) served in the United States Air Force for 36 years, retiring as a major general. He went on to serve as the director of the National Museum of the United States Air Force from 1996 to 2010. He was a well-known civic leader in the Dayton, Ohio, area.

Early life Metcalf was born in Anamosa, Iowa, in 1933. He graduated from Anamosa High School in 1951. He then attended Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He graduated in 1955, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree economics and accounting. He was also a distinguished graduate of Coe College's Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps program.

Military career He entered the Air Force in October 1955 and was assigned to the Air Force Hospital at Wimpole Park, England, as accounting and finance officer. In 1958, he became the base accounting and finance officer at Donaldson Air Force Base, South Carolina. He was transferred to George Air Force Base, California, in May 1959, again as a base level accounting and finance officer. He completed Squadron Officer School in 1962.

Air Force Museum In 1996, Metcalf became Director of the National Museum of the United States Air Force, commonly called “the Air Force Museum.” The museum is located on Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, and is the world's largest and oldest military aviation museum. educate the public about aviation history, plan special events, and work in the museum's administrative offices. He is responsible for a building complex with of public exhibit space (17 acres of indoor space). The museum collection has more than 400 aircraft and other large aerospace vehicles plus thousands of aviation artifacts on display. along with X-type test vehicles. The museum also has an aviation art gallery, a six-story IMAX theatre that seat 500 viewers, and a full-motion simulator that gives the sensation of flying a jet fighter. Outside on the museum grounds, there is an air park with numerous large aircraft along with a World War II control tower. In addition, Metcalf oversees an inventory of more than 6,000 aerospace vehicles and historically valuable artifacts that are on loan to 450 civilian museums, cities, and veteran organizations throughout the United States. The latest addition to the museum is a $3.2 million Missile and Space Gallery which was opened in 2004. Currently the museum is planning to build a addition to house a Space Gallery.

In 2005, Metcalf was promoted to the Senior Executive Service, the highest federal civilian rank below Presidential appointees.

Community leader

As a youth Metcalf earned the Boy Scouts of America's (BSA) Eagle Scout rank on August 19, 1949. He continued his involvement the BSA as a member of the BSA's Leadership and Standards Committee and was recognized on October 27, 2009 with BSA's Distinguished Eagle Scout Award. In addition to his work at the Air Force museum, General Metcalf is the Central Region Vice President of the Boy Scouts of America. He is a former member of the Oakwood, Ohio City Council, and served on the Corporate Development Board of Trustees for Dayton, Ohio. He has served as chairman of the Board of Directors for the Greater Dayton United Way campaign, and as a member of the Board of Directors for Greater Dayton Public Television. He has also served as a member of Michigan State University's National Alumni Board.