Phillip S. Meilinger (born in 1948) is a retired colonel of the USAF as well as a historian and analyst. He is a member of the Academic Advisory Panel of the Royal Air Force Centre for Air Power Studies. Before his retirement he was Dean of the School of Advanced Airpower Studies (SAAS) at the USAF's Air University in Montgomery, Alabama. He received a BS degree from the United States Air Force Academy, an Master of Arts degree from the University of Colorado, and obtained a PhD degree in military history from the University of Michigan. A command pilot, he has served as a C-130 aircraft commander and instructor pilot in both Europe and the Pacific. After a tour at the Air Force Academy, he was assigned to the Doctrine Division of the Air Staff at the Pentagon. He has authored four books a