Donn A. Starry

Born in 1925, Starry graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1948 as a second lieutenant of armor, after having enlisted as a private in 1943. His early career included staff and command positions in the United States, Europe, and Korea. During this same period, he attended the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, the Armed Forces Staff College, and the Army War College. Starry later earned a master's degree in international affairs from the George Washington University, and several honorary doctoral degrees. ==Military career==

In 1969, Starry commanded the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment in the Vietnam War and led its attack into Cambodia in May 1970. On May 5, 1970, Starry was wounded by a North Vietnamese grenade that also wounded future Army general Frederick Franks, Jr. In 1973, Starry became commanding general of United States Army Armor Center and School, and then commander of V Corps (1976–1977), in the Federal Republic of Germany. His conclusion, based on over a hundred battle simulations conducted in Germany, was that the existing DePuy doctrine of "Active Defense" failed; it was termed by one wag "a good way to lose a battle slowly". Later, as commander of TRADOC, Starry formulated AirLand Battle doctrine and such minutiae as the Joint Air Attack Team Tactics, which prepared the Army for warfighting into the twenty-first century. Starry released an updated FM100-5 in 1982, Starry's awards and decorations include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, two awards of the Army Distinguished Service Medal, the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit with two Oak Leaf Clusters, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Soldier's Medal, the Bronze Star with "V" device, the Purple Heart, and the Air Medal with nine Oak Leaf Clusters. Starry was also the Honorary Colonel of the Regiment for the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment. He was also a member of the Defense Science Board for two terms. Bibliography • • ==Retirement==

Upon retirement from the army, Starry joined Ford Aerospace, serving first as vice president and general manager of Ford's Space Missions Group, and later as executive vice president of Ford Aerospace and special assistant to the chief executive officer of Braddock Dunn & McDonald. He served as a member of the board of Maxwell Laboratories from 1988 to 1993, and from 1996 to 1998 was chairman of the board as the company became Maxwell Technologies, switching their focus from government to commercial markets. He has also served as chairman of the board of Universal Voltronics in Brookfield, Connecticut. His civic projects have included membership on the board of the Eisenhower Foundation in Abilene, Kansas, chairman of the board of the U.S. Cavalry Memorial Foundation, and a member of the board of the Washington Institute of Foreign Affairs. He was interred in Arlington National Cemetery on 11 January 2012, Section 34, Site 583-A. ==Personal life==

Starry was married to the former Leatrice (Letty) Gibbs of Kansas City, Kansas. They had four children and seven grandchildren. On 10 April 2010, he celebrated his new marriage to a long-time friend, Karen (Cookie) Deitrick. ==References==