WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Sept. 30, 2014) – The new deputy chief of staff, G-4, Lt. Gen. Gustave F. Perna, is the best person to tackle the difficult job of Army worldwide logistics, said the Army’s top officer.
Perna has “all the right characteristics” for success, Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Ray Odierno said at Perna’s promotion ceremony at the Pentagon, Friday.
Having the best leader in the job is especially critical during these “really tough times where logistics and running our logistics organization has never been more important,” Odierno said.
The Army is bringing equipment out of Afghanistan, “as we prepare for deployments to Africa, as we prepare for deployments to Iraq,” he said.
Perna is the kind of great leader the Army needs to face these challenges, Odierno said.
“As we have equipment sets that we’re putting all around the world in order for us to be able to respond in the future, we need somebody who can lead us in that effort. Gus Perna is absolutely the right guy to do it,” Odierno said.
“As the senior logistician in the Army, that’s a big burden, but one that I know that he will be able to do. I can’t think of anybody else that I’m more proud of. Gus will continue to excel,” the chief of staff noted.
Perna assumed duties as the Army’s deputy chief of staff, G-4, on Sept. 18. The previous deputy chief of staff, G-4, Lt. Gen. Raymond V. Mason, retired in late August. Kathleen Miller served as acting deputy chief of staff, G-4, in the interim.
Perna said he was deeply honored that Odierno hosted the ceremony.
“It is something that I and my family will remember forever,” he said.
“It is a continued honor for me to serve as your G-4,” Perna said to Odierno. “I believe, as you said, it will be a time period where things are going to be very difficult.”
After thanking his family for their unwavering support, Perna lauded the many great Army leaders who inspired him to succeed.
“Over the years, the leaders who stuck out to me are the ones who had the courage to do what was right. When the hard right was the way to go, they were the ones who led by example,” Perna said.
They are the leaders who “never settled for status quo,” and helped him grow as an Army officer, he said.
“I will be forever grateful to all those leaders who have helped me throughout the years,” he added.
Perna, who has served more than three decades in the Army, now oversees policies and procedures used by 240,000 Army logisticians throughout the world.
His previous assignments include deputy chief of staff, G-3/4, U.S. Army Materiel Command; and commanding general, Joint Munitions Command, Rock Island, Illinois.
He deployed three times in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom/New Dawn. Earlier deployments included Bosnia, Saudi Arabia and Somalia.