Lieutenant General Scott Howell retired from the US Air Force in August 2021 after a 34-year career during which he held a variety of positions of leadership, including most recently as commander of the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), Fort Bragg, NC, from July 2018 to June 2021. 

At JSOC, Lt Gen. Howell led military operations across multiple theaters, and was responsible for the readiness and mission execution of highly-specialized military forces of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines. Before JSOC he served as the Vice Commander of U.S. Special Operations Command with a focus on organizing, training, and equipping 70,000 U.S. Special Operations personnel operating in 85 countries. In this role he led acquisition, budgeting, programming, and fiscal processes for USSOCOM with the military services, Joint Staff, and Office of the Secretary of Defense. 

From 2016-2017 he commanded Coalition special operations forces in Afghanistan as Commanding General, NATO Special Operations Component Command / U. S. Special Operations Joint Task Force – Afghanistan. 

Lt. Gen. Howell’s senior staff positions include service as the Deputy Director of Special Operations on the Joint Staff, HQ Air Force, Air Force Special Operations Command, U.S. Special Operations Command. 

A Kentucky native, Howell is a 1987 graduate of the United States Air Force Academy and earned Master’s Degrees from the Air Command & Staff College and the National War College.

He is a career helicopter pilot with assignments in rescue and special operations, and deployed extensively over his career.