Henry Hugh Shelton (born 2 January 1942)[1] is a former United States Army officer who served as the 14th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 1997 to 2001.

[4][5] Shelton served two tours of duty in the Vietnam War[1] with the 5th Special Forces Group, and with the 173rd Airborne Brigade,[6] followed by a series of command and staff assignments.

Upon the retirement of John M. Shalikashvili, Shelton was appointed as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff by President Bill Clinton and Secretary of Defense William Cohen on 1 October 1997.

[8] During the events of 11 September 2001, Shelton was flying on-board Boeing C-135 Speckled Trout, traveling to a NATO meeting in Europe, but turned back and returned to Washington.

[9][10] Upon entering the United States Airspace, the C-135 flew past the World Trade Center so Shelton was able to assess the situation following the attack.

[9] Already scheduled to retire in October, Shelton spent his last weeks in office coordinating military plans to destroy al-Qaeda and Taliban forces in Afghanistan and helping to develop an interagency strategy to defeat, disrupt, and degrade terrorist activities around the world.

[10] Upon Shelton's end of term, President George W. Bush nominated then-Vice Chairman Air Force General Richard Myers, who was sworn in on 1 October 2001.

The center was created to "inspire, educate, and develop values-based leaders, both locally and globally, committed to personal integrity, professional ethics, and selfless service."

At his alma mater of North Carolina State University, the General Hugh Shelton Leadership Center was founded in 2002, which grants scholarships to people who are committed to personal integrity, professional ethics, and selfless service.

[17] An excerpt tells the story of a high-ranking Clinton Cabinet member proposing that Shelton intentionally allow an American pilot to be killed by the Iraqis to have an excuse to retaliate and go to war.