First female commander of US Army Infantry Division appointed
The California National Guard has appointed Brigade General Laura Yeager as commander of the 40th Infantry Division, making her the first woman to assume command of a US Army infantry division.
An ex UH-60 Black Hawk pilot, Yeager began her active-duty military service in May 1986 after receiving her commission from the Reserve Officer Training Corps at California State University Long Beach. She then finished military training in 1989 and went on to serve as a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter aeromedical evacuation pilot.
Yeager will be taking over command from retiring Major General Mark Malanka. Her official appointment will be celebrated during a ceremony at the Joint Forces Training Base, Los Alamitos, California, on 29 June.