Len Anderson IV

Len Anderson IV
Official portrait, 2024
Bornc. 1971 (age 54–55)
AllegianceUnited States
Branch
Service years1993–present
RankLieutenant General
CommandsUnited States Marine Corps Reserve
United States Marine Corps Forces, South
4th Marine Aircraft Wing
Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 41
ConflictsOperation Southern Watch
Operation Desert Fox
AwardsLegion of Merit
Alma materIllinois Institute of Technology
Air War College

Leonard F. Anderson IV (born c. 1971) is a United States Marine Corps lieutenant general who serves as the commander of United States Marine Corps Reserve and United States Marine Corps Forces, South.[2] He also served as the commanding general of the 4th Marine Aircraft Wing.[3][4][5]

In April 2023, Anderson was nominated for promotion to lieutenant general and assignment as commander of the United States Marine Corps Reserve and United States Marine Corps Forces, South.[6][7]

Career

Anderson was commissioned in 1993 upon graduation from the Illinois Institute of Technology. He was designated a naval aviator in October of 1995 and selected to fly the F/A-18 Hornet. Lieutenant General Anderson's previous assignments as a General Officer include Commanding General, 4th Marine Aircraft Wing, Deputy Commanding General, Marine Corps Forces Cyberspace Command and Deputy Commander, Joint Task Force-ARES.[8][9] He attended the Top Gun school in January 2000 [3]

Assignments in the Operating Forces include: Schedules Officer, Assistant Operations Officer, Air Wing Landing Signal Officer, and Weapons and Tactics Instructor with the “Fabulous Checkerboards” of VMFA-312 while deployed on USS Enterprise and USS Truman during Operations SOUTHERN WATCH, DESERT FOX and DELIBERATE FORGE; and Training Officer, MAG-31. In 2006, he transferred to the Marine Forces Reserve where he has served as the Assistant Operations Officer, Marine Aviation Training Support Group 42; Operations Officer, VMFA-112; and Commanding Officer, MALS-41.[8][9]

Assignments in the Supporting Establishment include: Demonstration Pilot, Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron; Flight Instructor, VT-86; Operations Officer, Marine Aviation Training Support Group-41. Headquarters and Staff Assignments: Senior Reserve Advisor, MAG-41; Reserve Branch Head, HQMC Aviation; Assistant Wing Commander, 4th Marine Aircraft Wing. Joint assignments include two deployments in support of Operation INHERENT RESOLVE as the Deputy Director, Combined Joint Operations Center-Baghdad, Iraq and Battle Director, 609th Combined Air Operations Center, Qatar.[8]

Lieutenant General Anderson is a graduate of the Weapons and Tactics Instructor Course, the Navy Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN), Command and Staff College (DEP), Air War College (DEP), Advanced Joint PME, Senior Joint Information Operations Application Course, Harvard Kennedy School's Cybersecurity: The Intersection of Policy and Technology, and the Combined Force Air Component Commander Course.[8]

Personal life

As a child, was a respected singing talent and performed a solo in an opera with Lucianno Pavaratti. [3] His First professional acting job was a Public Service Announcement commercial emphasizing school bus safety at the age of 12.[3]

Anderson was poised to become a marine biologist while acting at the community theatre. The release of Top Gun changed that plan and Later Joined The Marines.[3]

Anderson Is A Member Of Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity.[10]

Anderson Is a Coast Guard certified charter boat captain, and ran an offshore charter company for 3 years.

Filmography

References

  1. ^ "Proud Legacy Continues: Marine Forces Reserve and Marine Forces South change of command". Defense Visual Information Distribution Service. 21 March 2024.
  2. ^ "Major General Leonard F. Anderson IV". Office of the Deputy Commandant for Plans, Policies, and Operations. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Len Anderson IV". IMDb.
  4. ^ "A Life Larger Than the Big Screen". Illinois Tech Magazine. 8 April 2021.
  5. ^ "Commanding General". www.marforres.marines.mil.
  6. ^ "PN539 - 1 nominee for Marine Corps, 118th Congress (2023-2024) | Congress.gov | Library of Congress".
  7. ^ "General Officer Announcements". U.S. Department of Defense. 24 April 2023. Archived from the original on 24 April 2023. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  8. ^ a b c d "Major General Leonard F. Anderson IV". Plans, Policies and Operations. Archived from the original on 16 December 2023. Retrieved 28 December 2025.
  9. ^ a b "Lieutenant General Leonard F. Anderson IV Biography". DVIDS. Retrieved 28 December 2025.
  10. ^ phikappaphi. "Len Anderson". Pi Kappa Phi. Retrieved 28 December 2025.

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Marine Corps