Troy Meink
American government official
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Troy Edward Meink[1] (/mink/ MEENK) is an American government official who has served as the 27th secretary of the Air Force since 2025.[2] He previously served as the principal deputy director of the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO).
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Matthew Lohmeier
Joe Biden
Donald Trump
Troy Meink | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2025 | |
| 27th United States Secretary of the Air Force | |
| Assumed office May 16, 2025 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Deputy | Edwin Oshiba (acting) Matthew Lohmeier |
| Preceded by | Frank Kendall III |
| Principal Deputy Director of the National Reconnaissance Office | |
| In office October 5, 2020 – May 16, 2025 | |
| President | Donald Trump Joe Biden Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Frank Calvelli |
| Succeeded by | William B. Adkins |
| Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force for Space | |
| In office November 2013 – June 2014 | |
| President | Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | Richard McKinney |
| Succeeded by | Winston Beauchamp |
| Personal details | |
| Education | South Dakota State University (BS) Ohio State University (MS, PhD) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch/service | |
Years of service | 1988–1993 (active) 1994–1998 (reserve) |
| Unit | National Air and Space Intelligence Center |
| Battles/wars | Gulf War |
Early life
Meink is from Lemmon, South Dakota.[3] He attended South Dakota State University, where he received a degree in mechanical engineering in 1988.[4] He later attended Ohio State University, earning a master's degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering in 1995 and a doctorate in the field in 1999.[4]
Career
Meink entered the United States Air Force in 1988 through the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program at South Dakota State University.[5] He started his career as a KC-135 tanker navigator and instructor and then a lead test engineer for the design and evaluation of ballistic missile test vehicles for the Missile Defense Agency.[5] While a KC-135 tanker navigator, he was stationed at Grissom Air Force Base and served during the Gulf War in Iraq.[4]
Meink subsequently led development for the Military Satellite Communications Joint Program Office and served as program director for the Transformational Satellite Communications System.[5] He was a director in the office of the assistant secretary of defense and a director for signal intelligence systems acquisition for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) from 2006 to 2013.[5]
Meink then served as the Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force for Space from November 2013 to June 2014.[5] Afterwards, he was assistant director of national intelligence for systems and resource analyses from 2014 to 2017, before becoming the director of Geospatial Intelligence Systems Acquisition at the NRO.[5] In October 2020, he was appointed the principal deputy director of the NRO by President Donald Trump.[6] In this position, he oversaw a budget of over $15 billion to develop satellite capabilities.[3]
On January 16, 2025, President-elect Trump announced Meink as the nominee to serve as United States Secretary of the Air Force.[3] Meink's appointment had been quietly encouraged by Elon Musk.[7] His nomination was confirmed by the Senate in a 74–25 vote on May 13,[8] and he was sworn in on May 16, 2025.[9]
