Viorel Pană
Viorel Pană | |
|---|---|
Lt. Gen. Viorel Pană in 2023 | |
| Born | 4 February 1967 Găești, Dâmbovița County, Romania |
| Allegiance | Romania |
| Branch | Romanian Air Force |
| Years of service | 1985 – 2023 |
| Rank | Lieutenant General |
| Commands | Chief of the Air Force Staff 90th Airlift Base 901st Air Transport Squadron |
| Battles / wars | Irak War Afghanistan War |
| Awards | Legion of Merit Ordre national du Mérite Order of Aeronautical Virtue Emblem of Honor of the Romanian Army Emblem of Honor of the General Staff Emblem of Honor of the Air Force Honorific sign "În Serviciul Patriei" |
| Alma mater | Carol I National Defence University |
| Children | one daughter |
Viorel Pană (born 1967) is a general of the Romanian Air Force who served as the Air Force Chief of Staff between 2017 and 2023. Pană started his military career in 1985 after graduating from the Dimitrie Cantemir Military High School in Breaza. From 1989 he flew as a fighter pilot on MiG-21 fighters, eventually transitioning to transport aircraft in 1992.
He has more than 3,000 flight hours on the C-130 Hercules and C-27J Spartan, and flew over 200 missions in operation theatres in Irak, Afghanistan, Bosnia and Kosovo. He was assigned as Chief of Staff of the Air Force in 2017, having previously served as commander of the 90th Airlift Base.