INDIANAPOLIS – Governor Eric J. Holcomb announced Major General R. Dale Lyles’s plans to retire as the Adjutant General of the Indiana National Guard in Jan. 2025 after serving for more than five years in the role and as a member of the governor’s cabinet.
“General Lyles brought great credit to Indiana’s National Guard by the way he fostered a culture of high standards, success, and stability among the men and women who serve up and down the chain of command,” said Gov. Holcomb. “Whenever disaster struck or duty called, General Lyles and our trained and ready Hoosier Guardsmen leaped into action and met every moment in stride. It was on his watch and because of his focused leadership that we modernized and mobilized the Indiana National Guard at home and abroad. I know his patriotic duty to serve burns as bright today as it did when he first raised his hand and took the oath to serve his nation and his Hoosier neighbors. I wish General and his family all the best on the next journey ahead.”
Lyles, a native of Salem, was appointed the 59th Adjutant General of Indiana by Gov. Holcomb in Oct. 2019, leading the Indiana Army National Guard and Indiana Air National Guard.
During nearly 40 years of service in the Indiana Army National Guard, Lyles deployed to Bosnia shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks in support of Operation Joint Forge and to Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom. He also previously served as the deputy chief of operations at the National Guard Bureau in Washington, D.C., among numerous military leadership roles. During his tenure as adjutant general, Lyles additionally served as the national chair of the National Guard Bureau’s recruiting and retention task force.
During the last five years, the Indiana National Guard
- Responded to an increasing number of state and local missions;
- Met every assigned federal mission with units at the highest levels of readiness;
- Improved talent attraction and achieved historically high personnel retention during the most difficult recruiting environment in the history of the all-volunteer force;
- Cultivated and strengthened relationships across economic, defense, and education sectors;
- Made historic state investments to modernize armories across Indiana;
- Modernized force structure to ensure Indiana National Guard talent and technology remain relevant and ready to meet evolving future missions.
“Serving as adjutant general has been the honor of my life. I’m grateful to Gov. Holcomb and the women and men who proudly serve our fellow Hoosiers in the Indiana National Guard for the privilege of leading this dynamic team,” said Maj. Gen. Lyles. “The Indiana National Guard has allowed me to earn three degrees, work locally and globally, and serve something greater than self – everything the next generation is seeking.”
About 12,000 Indiana National Guard soldiers and airmen serve in a unique dual state and federal role. They are trained and prepared for domestic operations like relief efforts following severe weather and are also trained for federal operations, including overseas deployments. The Indiana National Guard also operates Army National Guard armories and units nationwide, training facilities at Camp Atterbury and Muscatatuck Urban Training Center, and Air National Guard wings in Fort Wayne and Terre Haute.
The next gubernatorial administration will appoint the next adjutant general.
