Admiral JAMES LAIR

Admiral Lair is a native of Los Angeles, California.  He enlisted in the Marine Corps reserve in 1957, then entered the Navy through the Naval Aviation Cadet Program and earned his Wings and Commission in December 1961.  He made three Western Pacific deployments flying from the Aircraft Carrier, Bennington.  He next attended the Naval Postgraduate School and graduated in June 1969 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations.

Flying the A-4 Skyhawk and A-7 Corsair II, Admiral Lair made two Combat Cruises aboard the USS Ticonderoga, and USS Kitty Hawk flying over 200 Combat Missions over Vietnam.  He then attended the School of Command and Staff at the Naval War College and received a MS in International Relations from the George Washington University.  He then made a third Combat Cruise aboard the USS Coral Sea and participated in the evacuation of South Vietnam and was one of the leaders in the recovery of the Merchant Ship Mayaguez.

He commanded Attack Squadron 146, Carrier Air Wing Six during the Lebanon Crisis, the USS Caloosahatchee and the Aircraft Carrier USS America (CV66).

Following his tour as Chief of Staff for Commander US Sixth Fleet he was promoted to Rear Admiral.

He then commanded Carrier Group Two and deployed to the Mediterranean during the Bosnian Crisis.

Rear Admiral Lair's active duty tour was as Director of Operations, Headquarters, US European Command, Stuttgart, Germany. He was responsible for the Air Land and Air Drop Resupply Missions in Bosnia and enforcement of the No Fly Zone over Northern Iraq. 

Admiral Lair has over 8000 flight hours and 1400 Carrier Landings.  His personal awards include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, 4 Legions of Merit, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Award, 2 Individual Air Medals, 22 Strike Flight Air Medals and 4 Navy Commendation Medals with the Combat "V" and various campaign awards.

Retiring in 1995, he then came to Texas and worked for Lockheed Martin on the Navy variant of the Joint Strike Fighter.  For five years he was the Manager of the FlightSafety Learning Center at the DFW Airport.

He is current employed by the department of Homeland Security as the Acting Federal Security Director of the DFW Airport.

Admiral Lair lives with his wife Jackie in Southlake, Texas. They have two daughters and five grandchildren.