Bio
Major General (MG) James A. Guest was born 12 April 1938 in Elberton, Georgia. He commissioned as an Infantry Second Lieutenant in June 1960, after which he served as a Platoon Leader, later Executive Officer, of Company D, 1st Airborne Brigade, 502d Infantry, at Fort Campbell, KY.
MG Guest’s long association with U.S. Army Special Forces (SF) began in 1962, when he joined 10th SF Group (SFG) in Bad Toelz, Germany. After graduating the Infantry Officer Advanced Course in 1966, he deployed to the Republic of Vietnam with the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile), commanding a company of the 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry. He returned home to serve as a Ranger Instructor at the Mountain Ranger Camp, before returning to Vietnam in 1969 as a Regional/Popular Force Advisor, later Deputy Province Advisor, Advisory Team 69, Military Assistance Command, Vietnam.
During the 1970s and early 1980s, Guest completed multiple personnel assignments with SF and conventional units, including two years at the U.S. Army Military Personnel Center, that enabled him to better advocate for a separate SF career field in the coming years. He also commanded battalions in 7th and 10th SFG and attended the Naval War College before taking command of 5th SFG in 1982. In that position, he instituted a Desert Training Program that paid dividends as the 5th SFG mission shifted to what is now the U.S. Central Command Area of Responsibility.
MG Guest assumed command of the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School at Fort Bragg, NC, in August 1985. On his watch, several key initiatives came to fruition. SF became a basic U.S. Army branch in 1987, implemented an assessment & selection program in 1988, and adopted a single training standard for all active duty, Army National Guard, and Army Reserve SF soldiers. In his subsequent assignment as Commanding General, U.S. Army 1st Special Operations Command (1st SOCOM), he was instrumental in the establishment of a major command for Army Special Operations Forces (ARSOF), activated as the U.S. Army Special Operations Command on 1 December 1989.
During the ensuing restructuring of ARSOF major subordinate commands, Guest retained command of 1st SOCOM and oversaw its transformation, in 1990, into the U.S. Army Special Forces Command, which he commanded until September 1991. His final assignment was as J-3, U.S. Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida.
In 2009, MG Guest was selected as a Distinguished Member of the Special Forces Regiment. He passed away on 3 April 2025 at age 86.