Braxton Taylor
One of the Pentagon’s top generals is under investigation for allegedly shoving an airman on a flight in early September, a defense official and a spokesperson for the Army Criminal Investigation Division confirmed to Military.com.
Gen. Michael “Erik” Kurilla, who oversees U.S. Central Command, allegedly put his hands on an airman during a C-17 Globemaster III flight on a trip to Israel after becoming frustrated with access to communications and following a heated argument with the flight crew, one defense official with direct knowledge of the situation said.
“The Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division is aware of an alleged incident and is currently looking into it,” Mark Lunardi, a CID spokesperson, said in a statement to Military.com. “No additional information is available at this time.”
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Kurilla is among the highest-profile senior officers in the Pentagon. Central Command oversees troops and operations in Asia and the Middle East, including much of the U.S. military’s role in Israel and its ongoing combat operations in Iraq and Syria.
He had not been suspended from his position as of Thursday afternoon, but officers who commit offenses that break decorum or laws are commonly suspended with pay pending the conclusion of investigations, which can take months.
Before his current role, Kurilla served as the commander of the XVIII Airborne Corps. His resume also includes commanding the 82nd Airborne Division and the 75th Ranger Regiment. He was commissioned into the Army as an infantry officer in 1988.
During his career, Kurilla has been awarded the Bronze Star for valor and two Purple Hearts. He’s a veteran of the U.S. invasion of Panama, the Gulf War, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The news comes as Army Gen. Charles Hamilton, who as head of Army Materiel Command oversaw much of the service’s logistics operations, remains suspended following a Military.com investigation that found he may have subverted the Army’s selection process for its senior commanders, improperly propping up a subordinate officer otherwise deemed unfit for command.
Whether Hamilton is outright fired is now in the hands of Army Secretary Christine Wormuth. If he’s terminated, he would be the first Army 4-star fired from their position in a decade.
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