Lt Col Christopher J. Plourde is the Commander, 479th Student Squadron, 479th Flying Training Group, 12th Flying Training Wing, Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. The 479th STUS exercises administrative control of all Students at USAF Undergraduate Combat Systems Officer Training (UCT). The squadron also conducts all academic and simulator instruction for UCT.
Lt Col Plourde is responsible for overseeing the safety, supervision, administration and professional development of 479 STUS instructor cadre and over 450 students. He also performs flight duties as a T-6 instructor and evaluator pilot in the 455th Flying Training Squadron.
Lt Col Plourde is a 1997 graduate of the Reserve Officer Training Corps at Purdue University, and he earned his pilot wings at Vance AFB, Oklahoma in 1998. Prior to assuming his current position, he served as Bomber Section Chief, ACC/A3TO, Headquarters Air Combat Command, Langley AFB, Virginia.
Lt Col Plourde has served as an instructor and flight evaluator in the B-1B, T-6A, and T-34C. He has deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom and has amassed over 220 combat hours. He has also served in both the USFK Air Support Operations Center and USEUCOM Joint Operations Center. Lt Col Plourde is a Command Pilot with more than 3,500 flying hours in the B-1B, T-37, T-38, T-1, T-34C, and T-6A.
EDUCATION
1997 Bachelor of Science degree in Law and Society, Purdue University, IN
2003 Squadron Officer School, Air University, Maxwell AFB, Alabama
2005 Master of Aeronautical Science degree, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
2011 Master of Science degree in Military Operational Art and Science, Air University, Maxwell AFB, AL
2013 Air War College (in correspondence)
ASSIGNMENTS
1. June 1997 – October 1997, Adjutant Officer. AFRTOC DET 220, Purdue University, Indiana
2. October 1997 – May 1999, Specialized Joint Undergraduate Pilot Training Student and Introduction to Bomber Fundamentals Student, 8 FTS, 32 FTS, 25 FTS, Vance AFB, Oklahoma.
3. May 1999 – March 2000, B-1B Initial Qualification Pilot, 28th Bomb Squadron, Dyess AFB, Texas.
4. March 2000 – March 2002, B-1B CoPilot and Aircraft Commander, 37th Bomb Squadron, Ellsworth AFB, SD.
5. March 2002 – March 2003, Air Liaison Officer, Chief of Weapons and Tactics, ASOC Deputy Chief, 604th ASOS, Camp Red Cloud AIN, Korea
6. March 2003 – September 2006, T-34C Instructor Pilot, Evaluator Pilot, Flight Commander, Chief of Stan Eval, Assistant Director of Operations, Training Squadron 3, NAS Whiting Field, Florida.
7. September 2006 - December 2006, Student B-1B Requalification Course, 28th Bomb Squadron, Dyess AFB, Texas
8. December 2006 – June 2010, B-1B Instructor Pilot, Evaluator Pilot, Chief of Scheduling, Assistant Director of Operations and in-garrison Squadron Commander, 9th Bomb Squadron and 28th Bomb Squadron, Dyess AFB, Texas
9. July 2010 – June 2011, Student, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Alabama.
10. July 2011 – July 2014, Bomber Section Chief, B-1B FAM, HQ Air Combat Command, Langley AFB, Virginia
11. July 2014 – September 2014 – Student, T-6A Pilot Instructor Training, Randolph AFB, Texas
12. October 2014 – February 2016, Director of Operations, 455th Flying Training Squadron, NAS Pensacola, Florida.
13. March 2016 – Present, Commander, 479th Student Squadron, NAS Pensacola, Florida
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: Command Pilot
Flight hours: more than 3,500
Aircraft flown: B-1B, T-37A, T-1A, T-38A, T-34C, and T-6A.
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Meritorious Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
Air Medal
Aerial Achievement Medal
Joint Service Commendation Medal
Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
Navy Commendation Medal
Air Force Achievement Medal with oak leaf cluster
Combat Readiness Medal
National Defense Service Medal
Afghanistan Campaign Medal
Iraq Campaign Medal
Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
Korean Defense Service Medal
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant June 13, 1997
First Lieutenant June 13, 1999
Captain June 13, 2001
Major April 1, 2007
Lieutenant Colonel June 1, 2012
(Current as of 1 March 2016)