Howard H. Cooksey
United States Army general
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Howard Harrison Cooksey (1921–1999) was a United States Army Lieutenant General who served as deputy commander of the 23rd Infantry Division during the Vietnam War.
Howard Harrison Cooksey | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 21, 1921 |
| Died | December 22, 1999 (aged 78) |
Burial place | Arlington National Cemetery |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
Branch |  United States Army |
Service years | 1938–1978 |
Rank |  Lieutenant General |
Conflicts | World War II Korean War Vietnam War |
| Awards | Distinguished Service Medal Silver Star Legion of Merit Bronze Star |
Early life and education
Cooksey was born in Brentsville, Virginia and grew up in Manassas. He attended Virginia Tech, graduating in 1943.[1]
Military service
World War II
He served with the 158th Regimental Combat Team.[1]
Korean War
He served in the 7th Infantry Division.[1]
Post Korean War
In 1961, he served with 2nd Battle Group, 6th Infantry Regiment, part of the Berlin Brigade.[1]
In 1964, he obtained a master's degree in Foreign Affairs from George Washington University.[1]
In 1968, he was the commanding officer of Fort Dix before receiving orders to locate to South Vietnam in June 1968.[1]
Vietnam War
He served as deputy commander of the 23rd Infantry Division from 12 June 1968 to 1 May 1969.[1]
In June 1972, Cooksey took over MG Frederick Kroesen's role as senior U.S. military adviser in I Corps and assumed responsibility for supporting the South Vietnamese forces in undoing the North Vietnamese gains in the Easter Offensive.[2]
Post Vietnam
He served as deputy chief of staff for research, development and acquisition until his retirement from the Army in 1978.[1]
Later life
After his retirement he established a military consulting firm in Alexandria, Virginia.[1] He worked as a consultant for Ford Aerospace when they were competing for the award of the Division Air Defense gun system. The contract was awarded to Ford on 7 May 1981. It was later suggested that Ford had acted improperly in engaging consultants such as Cooksey who had only recently retired from key equipment decision-making roles in the Army and an investigation was launched by Undersecretary of the Army, James R. Ambrose, a former Ford Aerospace executive.[3]
He died of heart disease on 22 December 1999 at Fort Belvoir and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.[1]
