His next appointments were Chief of Materiel in Army Headquarters (1972–74) and General Officer Commanding Field Forces (1974–77). In 1977, having been raised to the rank of lieutenant general, he became Chief of the General Staff (CGS), being extended in that capacity twice before retiring from the Army in 1982. During his time as CGS, Dunstan reorganised the Army around the concept of specialised brigades and worked to improve the readiness of Army units to meet rapidly developing threats. This work later proved pivotal in ensuring the success of the Australian intervention in East Timor in 1999. His service as service chief was recognised by his appointment as a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1980.