COLONEL MARK A. BARRERA

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Col Mark A. Barrera is the Vice Commander of the 23d Wing at Moody Air Force Base, GA. In this position, he assists the commander to ensure the six groups and one detachment comprising 6,000 military and civilian personnel at four locations in the continental U.S. are combat ready. The wing has additional units at Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ, Nellis AFB, NV and Avon Park Air Force Range, FL. Moody is the home of the Air Force’s legendary “Flying Tigers.”

Colonel Barrera entered Air Force active-duty in 1993 after graduating from the Baylor University Reserve Officer Training Corps in 1992 and has served in various assignments in AFMC, AETC, ACC, PACAF, USAFE, NATO and USAFCENT. Colonel Barrera served as the Commander of the 866th Air Expeditionary Squadron during Operation ENDURING FREEDOM and has deployed in support of IRAQI FREEDOM, INHERENT RESOLVE & RESOLUTE SUPPORT. He is a command pilot with over 1,800 flying hours in the A-10A/C as a pilot and T-38 as an instructor and flight examiner. Prior to graduation from Air War College, Colonel Barrera was the Chief of Offensive Plans and Senior National Representative at NATO CAOC Uedem in Uedem, Germany.

EDUCATION
1992 Bachelor of Business Administration (ROTC DG), Baylor University, Waco, TX
2000 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell Air Force Base, AL
2004 Air Command & Staff College (Correspondence), Maxwell Air Force Base, AL
2007 Masters in Business Administration (DG), Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA
2007 Naval Command & Staff College, Monterey, CA
2009 Air War College (Correspondence), Maxwell Air Force Base, AL
2015 Masters in Strategic Studies, Air War College, Maxwell Air Force Base, AL

ASSIGNMENTS
1. Sep 1993 – Jul 1996, Financial & Program Manager, Air Combat Training Systems SPO, Eglin AFB, FL
2. Aug 1996 – Jan 1998, Student, Undergraduate Pilot Training, Vance AFB, OK
3. Jan 1998 – Jun 1998, Student, A-10 Replacement Training Unit, Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ
4. Jun 1998 – Nov 2000, A-10 Pilot, Flight Commander, 74th Fighter Squadron, Pope AFB, NC
5. Nov 2000 – May 2004, T-38 IP/Evaluator Pilot, Check Flt CC and Asst Ops Officer, Laughlin AFB, TX
6. Jun 2003 – Nov 2003, Air Operations Officer, Coalition Forces Land Component Staff, Camp Doha, Kuwait
7. May 2004 – Apr 2006, A-10 Pilot, Chief of Wing Programs & Inspections, Spangdahlem AB, GE
8. Apr 2006 – Dec 2007, Student, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA
9. Dec 2007 – Jul 2009, Test Director, A-10C IOT&E and Chief, Test Operations Division, Air Force Operational Test & Evaluation Center, Detachment 6, Nellis AFB, NV
10. Jul 2009 – Mar 2011, Chief of Safety, 51st Fighter Wing, Osan Air Base, ROK
11. Mar 2011 – Feb 2012, Commander, 866th Air Expeditionary Squadron, Kabul, Afghanistan
12. May 2012 – Jul 2014, Chief of Offensive Plans & Senior National Rep/CC, NATO CAOC Uedem, GE
13. Jul 2014 – Jun 2015, Student, Air War College, Maxwell AFB, AL
14. Jun 2015 – Present, Vice Commander, 23d Wing, Moody AFB, GA

FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: Command Pilot
Flight Hours: Over 1800
Aircraft Flown: T-37B, T-38A, A-10A/C

MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Bronze Star
Defense Meritorious Service Medal
Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters
Air Force Commendation Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Joint Service Achievement Medal
Achievement Medal with one oak leaf cluster

2008 AFOTEC Military Tester of the Year
2008 Air Force Association Howard E. Leaf Test & Evaluation Team of the Year

EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION 
Second Lieutenant 15 Aug 1992
First Lieutenant 15 Mar 1995
Captain 15 Mar 1997
Major 01 Jun 2003
Lieutenant Colonel 01 Jul 2008
Colonel 01 Nov 2014

(Current as of Jan 2017)