Change of Director for Defense Security Cooperation Agency - Lieutenant General Michael S. Davison, Jr. succeeded by Lieutenant General Tome H. Walters, Jr - Brief Article

DISAM Journal, Summer, 2000

On August 17, 2000, Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs Franklin D. Kramer presided over the change of director ceremony in which Lieutenant General Michael S. Davison, Jr., USA, was succeeded by Lieutenant General Tome H. Walters, Jr., USAF as Director, Defense Security Assistance Agency. General Davison has served as the agency's director since August 18, 1997. During his tenure, General Davison has spearheaded the FMS reinvention effort. Coming to the director's position at a time when public criticism of the FMS process was loud and biting, he led the effort to revitalize the arms transfer process. Under General Davison's guidance, the FMS community has commenced a new era in foreign military sales, reaching out to customers in foreign governments and across the U.S. government to create new business processes and increase customer satisfaction. The reduction of the surcharge on sales underscores his commitment to streamline the entire FMS process. He has espoused the messag e that government and industry must work as partners to achieve the military security and foreign policy goals at which arms transfers are aimed.

A combat arms officer, General Davison had a range of command and staff assignments in infantry and armor units from company to division level. He had combat tours in Vietnam with the First Cavalry Division and the Vietnamese Airborne Division Advisory Team. In Germany during the 1980s he commanded a tank battalion and armored brigade of the 3d Infantry Division and was Chief of Staff, 3d Armored Division astride the Fulda Gap. As Assistant Division Commander 5th Infantry Division (Mechanized), he participated in the capture of Manuel Noriega's headquarters in Panama during Operation Just Cause in December 1989. He served twice on the Army Staff working force development and requirement issues.

Other key general officer assignments include responsibility at the Combined Arms Command, Forth Leavenworth, for the Army's collective training doctrine and programs (1991-1992) before working for CINC, U.S. Central Command as the Chief, Office of Military Cooperation in Cairo, Egypt (1992-1994). Just prior to assignment as Director, DSCA, General Davision managed the Army's security assistance programs as Commander, U.S. Army Security Assistance Command, reporting to the Commander, U.S. Army Materiel Command. General Davison is a West Point graduate and earned a M.S. in foreign affairs from Georgetown University.

Joyce and Mike Davison live in McLean, Virginia and have two sons. Michael served as a U.S. Marine Corps Infantry officer and is now an actor and musician in Los Angeles. Paul, an Infantry Captain, is a company commander at Fort Benning, Georgia.

Most recently, General Walters served as the Principal Assistant Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force for International Affairs, Office of the Under Secretary of the Air Force, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. He was responsible for formulating and integrating U.S. Air Force policy with regard to political-military affairs, security assistance, technology and information disclosure issues, operative armaments development and attache affairs in support of U.S. government objectives.

The general was born in Shreveport, Louisiana. He has served in a variety of command and staff positions at Air Force headquarters, the Joint Staff, Air Mobility Command, Air Training Command and Strategic Air Command. He commanded the 407th Air Refueling Squadron, Loring AFB, the 47th Operations Group at Laughlin AFB, and the 19th Air Refueling Wing, Robins AFB. The general is a command pilot, with more than 3,500 hours in air refueling and training aircraft, including 100 combat support sorties.

General Walters is a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy where he earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in international affairs. He was a fellow in the MIT Seminar XXI program in international affairs. He also attended the program for Senior Executives in National and International Security, Harvard University. Claire and Tome Walters have two children, Allison Williamson who resides in Seguin, Texas, and Mark Walters who lives in Atlanta, Georgia.