Gen. David Petraeus

In Rick Atkinson's 2004 piece on Petraeus in The Washington Post ("The Making of a Modern General"), he cited his academy yearbook as saying: "A striver to the max, Dave was always 'going for it' in sports, academics, leadership, and even his social life."

Atkinson reported that he is a fierce athlete and competitor who survived after his parachute collapsed while ski-diving from 60 feet up, shattering his pelvis, which was reassembled with a plate and screws.

That wasn't the general's only brush with danger. On Sept. 21, 1991, after taking command of the 101st Airborne and during a training drill with live ammunition, Petraeus was accidentially shot just above the "a" in his name tag on the right side of his chest. The bullet shot straight through to his back and he was flown by helicopter to Vanderbuilt University Medical Center, where future Sen. Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) operated on him.

As a young officer, Petraeus held commands in airborne, mechanized and air assault units. He also was a senior assistant to top military officials, including: the Army chief of staff; the Supreme Allied Commander-Europe; and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

101st Airborne Division

Petraeus' resume also includes several assignments with the prestigious 101st Airborne Division.

He commanded its 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment. And from 1993 to 1994, Petraeus held two senior posts with the 101st: assistant chief of staff for plans, operations and training; and installation director of plans, training and mobilization.

He later commanded the 101st Airborne Division in combat operations during the first year of the ongoing Iraq conflict (Petraeus' first combat experience). He became the first commander of Multi-National Security Transition Command-Iraq in June 2004, a post he held until September 2005. From there, he took command of the U.S. Army's Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., in October 2005. It was during this tour that Petraeus revamped the Army's counterinsurgency manual. That propelled him back to the Iraq theater for a 20-month tour as commander of Multi-National Force-Iraq. He became Centcom chief in October 2008.

82nd Airborne

He also spent several tours with the Army's other prominent airborne division, the 82nd. From 1995 to 1997, he was commander of that division's 1st Brigade. Petraeus would return to the 82nd Division in 1999 as a brigadier general with the post of assistant division commander for operations, and later, acting commander. During this run with the 82nd Airborne, Petraeus deployed to Kuwait as part of Operation Desert Spring, follow-on to the Persian Gulf War (code named Operation Desert Storm).

In 2001 and 2002, Petraeus conducted a 10-month stint in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where he was assistant chief of staff for operations of the NATO Stabilization Force and deputy commander of the U.S. Joint Interagency Counterterrorism Task Force.

"Warrior-Scholar"

Petraeus is widely known in military and media circles as the modern version of the "warrior-scholar." Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), penned a piece for Time on the reason for the moniker. "Bright, studious, morally committed, physically brave, willing to carry a heavy rucksack without complaint and with clear-eyed resolve, Petraeus-along with the courageous men and women he has the honor to command-is our best reason to hope that we might yet avoid the catastrophe of an American defeat in Iraq," McCain wrote.

Petraeus is said to be as comfortable wielding complex concepts and policy ideas as he is a rifle. For instance, during a 2007 chat with Rep. Brian Baird (D-Wash.), an Iraq war opponent, Petraeus made the argument that Bush's policy should be given time to evolve. "I find him as genuine as can be," Baird said of the general.

Petraeus picked up master's and doctorate degrees at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Government, where he wrote his dissertation on ""The American Military and the Lessons of Vietnam.",

In September 2009, the general's spokesman disclosed that Petraeus had been treated for early-state prostate cancer since its diagnosis in February 2009.

Show less