Editing Richard Myers (section)

==Commander and Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff==
[[File:US Navy 040909-N-2568S-003 The Secretary of the Navy Gordon England, and the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Richard Myers, joined by his wife Mary Jo Myers, pose next to a model of a San Antonio-class amphibious dock land.jpg|thumb|[[Gordon R. England]], Mary Jo Myers, and General Myers in 2004.|alt=|222x222px|left]]
[[File:President George W. Bush holds a press conference in the Rose Garden.jpg|thumb|General Myers with Secretary of Defense [[Donald Rumsfeld]], President [[George W. Bush]] and Presidential Envoy to Iraq Ambassador [[Paul Bremer]] during a press conference in the [[White House]].|222x222px]]
From November 1993 to June 1996, Myers was Commander of [[United States Forces Japan]] and [[Fifth Air Force]] at [[Yokota Air Base]], Japan and From July 1996 to July 1997 Myers served as assistant to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at [[the Pentagon]]. Myers received his fourth-star in 1997 when he was appointed as commander in chief of [[Pacific Air Forces]].<ref name="af.mil" /> He commanded the Pacific Air Forces at [[Hickam Air Force Base]], [[Hawaii]], from July 1997 to July 1998. From August 1998 to February 2000, Myers was commander in chief of the [[North American Aerospace Defense Command]] and [[United States Space Command]]; Commander of the [[Air Force Space Command]]; and Department of Defense manager of the space transportation system contingency support at [[Peterson Air Force Base]], [[Colorado]]. As commander, Myers was responsible for defending America through space and intercontinental ballistic missile operations.

Following the appointment of General [[Joseph Ralston]] as [[Supreme Allied Commander Europe]] (SACEUR), Myers was appointed by President [[Bill Clinton]] to succeed Ralston as [[Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff]] in February 2000. He assumed his duties on 29 February 2000.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Myers|first=Richard Bowman|title=Eyes on the Horizon: Serving on the Front Lines of National Security|publisher=Threshold|date=March 17, 2009|isbn=978-1416560128}}</ref> As vice chairman, Myers served as the chairman of the [[Joint Requirements Oversight Council]], vice chairman of the Defense Acquisition Board, and as a member of the [[National Security Council Deputies Committee]] and the Nuclear Weapons Council. In addition, he acted for the chairman in all aspects of the Planning, Programming and Budgeting System including participation in the Defense Resources Board.
[[File:Defense.gov News Photo 050314-F-0193C-023.jpg|thumb|General Myers during a visit to [[Camp Victory|Camp Victory, Iraq]].|alt=|222x222px|left]]
In August 2001, a year after assuming the role of Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, President [[George W. Bush]] appointed Myers to be the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Myers was the first vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to be appointed chairman, since the role was established in 1987 after the enactment of [[Goldwater–Nichols Act|Goldwater–Nichols Act of 1986]].<ref name=":0" />

=== September 11 Attacks ===
On the [[September 11 attacks|morning of 11 September 2001]] Myers was on [[United States Capitol|Capitol Hill]] to meet Georgia Senator [[Max Cleland]] for his scheduled courtesy calls before his Senate confirmation hearings to be the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.<ref name=":0" /> While waiting for the senator, Myers watched a television news network in the outer office of Senator Cleland that a plane had just hit the [[One World Trade Center|North Tower of the World Trade Center]].<ref name=":0" /> A few minutes later Myers was informed by his military aide Captain [[Christopher T. Donahue|Chris Donahue]] about the hijacked plane that just hit the second tower of the [[World Trade Center (1973–2001)|World Trade Center]]. Later on General [[Ralph Eberhart]], the [[Commander-in-Chief of the North American Aerospace Defense Command]], managed to contact Myers and inform him about the recent hijacking situation. Myers then immediately left Capitol Hill to proceed back to [[The Pentagon]], where he was informed that this time another commercial airplane had just hit the western side of The Pentagon. During the crisis, Myers became the acting chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, since General [[Hugh Shelton]] was en route to Europe for a [[NATO]] Summit.<ref name=":0" /> Upon arriving at The Pentagon and after a rendezvous with Secretary of Defense [[Donald Rumsfeld]], Myers then conferred with Secretary Rumsfeld about the current situation and the next steps to be taken. Myers took command as the acting chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for half of the day during the attacks on 11 September, until General Shelton arrived back in Washington after he aborted his flight to Europe at 5:40&nbsp;p.m. local time.<ref name=":0" />