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Draft:Jeff McLean (corporate executive)

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Jeffrey McLean
Born1982[1]
Occupation(s)CEO, fighter pilot
EmployerghSMART
SpouseChristine McLean (m. 2009)
Children3

Jeffrey McLean (born 1982) is a corporate executive and former fighter pilot and test pilot. He served as a fighter pilot in the United States Navy, and flew over 50 combat missions over three deployments on aircraft carriers. He is currently the CEO of ghSMART.

Biography

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Early life and education

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McLean was raised in Mequon, Wisconsin[2] and attended Homestead High School. [3] McLean's parents, Don and Mary McLean, were an airline pilot and a university professor, respectively.[4] Don was also a military veteran, having flown A-4 jets in the United States Navy,[1] and became chief pilot of Midwest Airlines.[4]

Jeff McLean graduated from the United States Naval Academy with distinction, where he was awarded a Fulbright scholarship and Harry S. Truman Scholarship. He also graduated from the University of Oxford, where he received a master's degree.[4] In 2016, he earned an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.[5]

Career

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McLean served as a fighter pilot in the United States Navy.[6] In his career as a pilot, McLean completed over 50 missions[5] He logged over 1,500 flight hours and recorded 275 carrier landings.[7] In July 2010, McLean flew his final combat flight of his first deployment aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. He had a "chance meeting" with his wife while flying over Afghanistan, where she piloted the KC-135 Stratotanker tanker plane that refueled his F/A-18 Super Hornet.[3][8][9]

In 2013, McLean graduated from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School.[10] As a test pilot, he tested projects for the F/A-18 and served as the Navy's project officer for the Northrop Grumman X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System,[7] the first unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to land on an aircraft carrier, as well as the first to be refueled autonomously in the air.[11]

McLean later became a White House Fellow in September 2017, serving in the White House Office of American Innovation.[12] In 2019, he joined ghSMART, a global leadership advisory firm.[5] He was named president in 2022,[5] and in December 2024, McLean was named CEO.[13]

Personal life

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Jeff McLean is married to Christine McLean, a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy who served an aerial refueling pilot and flew KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft in the United States Air Force. The two met in high school in Wisconsin and amicably split when they went to different service academies. At the Navy-Air Force football game in 2003, the two reconnected, and began a relationship. They married in 2009.[4] Christine transitioned out of active service after having her second child;[14] the two have three children.[15] In December 2024, McLean and his wife acquired the historic Washington House Inn and Schroeder Guest House in Cedarburg, Wisconsin.[16][17]

In 2011, McLean was awarded the William Best Hesseltine Award by the Wisconsin Historical Society for his article "The MacArthurs and the Mitchells: Wisconsin's First Military Families". The award "honors the writer of the best article in the previous volume year in the Wisconsin Magazine of History".[18]

References

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  1. ^ a b McLean, Jeff; Malandrio, Greg (April 29, 2016). "Top Gun at 30: A Retrospective from Two Naval Aviators". War on the Rocks. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
  2. ^ "Jeff McLean". Center for a New American Security. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  3. ^ a b Jones, Meg (July 1, 2010). "Married pilots hook up on military refueling mission". Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d "Christine Todd, Jeffrey McLean". New York Times. May 9, 2009. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d Kelner, Braden (2023). "Where Are They Now: 40 Under 40". Wharton Magazine. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
  6. ^ Benson, Eric (June 28, 2018). "The friend connection". Men's Journal. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
  7. ^ a b Council, Atlantic (March 26, 2015). "2015 Millennium Fellow Bios". Atlantic Council. Retrieved February 6, 2025.
  8. ^ Mann, Shannon (August 5, 2010). "Love connection: Tanker pilot tells NBC about hookup over Afghanistan". Fourth Air Force. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
  9. ^ Jones, Meg (September 7, 2011). "Working on a mission of love". Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
  10. ^ Harris, Rich (January 16, 2014). "US Naval Test Pilot School Class 144 graduates". Pax River Press. Retrieved February 6, 2025.
  11. ^ "The White House Announces the 2017-2018 Class of White House Fellows – The White House". White House. September 20, 2017. Retrieved February 6, 2025.
  12. ^ "Senate targets Twitter". POLITICO. September 21, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
  13. ^ "Jeff McLean Named CEO of ghSMART, Continuing Legacy of Leadership Excellence". PR Newswire. December 5, 2024.
  14. ^ Konya, Rebecca (November 11, 2021). "Veterans in Business: Christine McLean, Tableau Software". Milwaukee Business Journal. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
  15. ^ McLean, Christine. "My wingman in life, Jeffrey McLean!". LinkedIn. Retrieved January 30, 2025.
  16. ^ Spitz, Sonia (December 24, 2024). "Cedarburg's Washington House Inn and Schroeder House sold for $3.6 million". BizTimes - Milwaukee Business News. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
  17. ^ Staff, Christina Luick-News Graphic (December 31, 2024). "Washington House Inn sold". Ozaukee County News Graphic. Retrieved January 30, 2025.
  18. ^ "About the William Best Hesseltine Award". Wisconsin Historical Society. February 4, 2013. Retrieved January 30, 2025.

Category:1982 births Category:Living people Category:United States Naval Academy alumni Category:United States Naval Academy alumni Category:Alumni of the University of Oxford Category:White House Fellows

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