Major General
George H. Akin

Major General George H. Akin was born in Henrietta, Texas on March 26, 1934. He completed his undergraduate studies at Texas A&M University in 1956, received his MBA from Babson College in 1972, and was awarded an honorary PhD in Public Administration by Babson in 1989. Entering the Army as an Armor officer in November 1956, he completed the Armor Basic Course at Fort Knox, Kentucky the following April and was integrated into the Regular Army as an Ordnance officer in 1960.

He completed overseas tours in Germany (1960-62), Vietnam (1964-65), Turkey (1967-69), a second tour in Germany (1980-83), and one final tour in Korea (1985-86), where he served as Assistant Chief of Staff for Logistics J-4,C-4,G-4, Combined Forces Command.

During a successful command tour at Anniston Army Depot from 1978 to 1980, he administered the teardown and rebuild of the new M1 tank, something that many observers had argued could not be accomplished at a rebuild depot.

During his final tour as Commanding General of the U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland from 1988 to 1991, he directed the reorientation of garrison military and civilians to total support of soldiers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. He also oversaw a massive overhaul and rebuild of the installation infrastructure. In addition, General Akin directed a team building approach to environmental management, wherein all personnel developed a vested interest in environmental compliance. General Akin not only set an example for his soldiers, but for his family, since two of his sons have followed his lead and become Ordnance officers.