Col. Ryan A. Zeitler is the deputy commander, 11th Wing, Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, Washington, D.C. As deputy commander of "The Chief's Own", he assists the wing commander in supporting the United States Air Force Honor Guard, United States Air Force Band and Arlington Chaplaincy missions, which conduct ceremonial honors worldwide. The 11th Wing also provides security, personnel, logistics, contracting, finance, and infrastructure support to approximately 70 mission partner organizations and more than 18,000 military and civilian employees and their families throughout the National Capital Region. Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling encompasses approximately 1,000-acres and supports a range of military and civilian agency mission partners, including the Defense Intelligence Agency, Marine Helicopter Squadron One, the White House Communications Agency, the Joint Air Defense Operations Center, United States Coast Guard Station Washington, and the U.S. Navy Ceremonial Guard.
Col. Zeitler was commissioned through the Reserve Officer Training Corps at Texas A&M University in 2002. He began his career as a civil engineer and transitioned in 2006 to air battle manager, where he was first assigned to the E-3B/C Airborne Warning and Control System and later the E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System. He has supported Operation Iraqi Freedom as a civil engineering officer, and flown over 1,100 combat hours in support of Operations Enduring Freedom, Freedom’s Sentinel, and Inherent Resolve as both an AWACS controller and a JSTARS Mission Crew Commander. Col Zeitler has twice commanded expeditionary JSTARS squadrons, and in 2016 directed the global transition of his squadron from operations in support of U.S. Africa Command to operations in support of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, successfully reestablishing JSTARS’ enduring presence in the Indo-Pacific theater.
Prior to this assignment, he served as Chief of Strategic Competition Division, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii.
EDUCATION
2002 Bachelor of Science, Civil Engineering, Texas A&M University, Texas
2008 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Alabama
2009 Master of Science, Management, Troy University, Alabama
2012 Air Command and Staff College, by correspondence
2019 Master of Science, National Resource Strategy, Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy, Fort McNair, Washington, D.C.
ASSIGNMENTS
- September 2002 – March 2005, Engineering Project Officer and Executive Officer, 49th Civil Engineer Squadron, Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico
- March 2005 – October 2006, Chief, Pollution Prevention, 60th Civil Engineer Squadron, Travis Air Force Base, California (October 2005 - December 2005, Resources Flight Commander, 407th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron, Ali Air Base, Iraq)
- November 2006 – October 2007, Student, Undergraduate Air Battle Manager Training, Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida
- November 2007 – January 2009, Student, E-3B/C Air Weapons Officer Initial/Mission Qualification Training, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma
- February 2009 - July 2011, Assistant Flight Commander, Flight Commander, Chief of Current Operations and E-3 Air Weapons Officer, 964th Airborne Air Control Squadron, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma
- July 2011 – December 2012, Wing Executive Officer and E-3 Senior Director, 552d Air Control Wing, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma
- January 2013 - May 2013, Student, E-8C Mission Crew Commander Initial Qualification Training, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia
- May 2013 – July 2015, Chief of Staff, Assistant Director of Operations, and E-8C Mission Crew Commander, 12th Airborne Command and Control Squadron, Robins Air Force Base, GA (December 2014 – February 2015, Director of Operations, 5th Expeditionary Airborne Command and Control Squadron, Kadena Air Base, Japan)
- July 2015 - October 2016, Inspector General and E-8C Instructor Mission Crew Commander, 461st Air Control Wing, Robins Air Force Base, GA (May 2016 – September 2016, Commander, 8th & 5th Expeditionary Airborne Command and Control Squadrons, Souda Bay NAS, Greece and Kadena Air Base, Japan, respectively)
- October 2016 – May 2017, Director of Operations, 461st Operations Support Squadron, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia
- May 2017 – May 2018, Commander, 7th Expeditionary Airborne Command and Control Squadron, Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar
- June 2018 – June 2019, Student, Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy, Fort McNair, Washington, D.C.
- July 2019 – July 2021, Branch Chief, Deputy Division Chief, and Division Chief, Strategic Operations Division, Joint Information Operations Warfare Center, Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas
- July 2021 – June 2022, Chief, Strategic Competition Division, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii
- June 2022 - Present, Deputy Commander, 11th Wing, Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, Washington, D.C.
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: senior air battle manager
Flight hours: 1,950
Aircraft flown: E-3B/C and E-8C
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Defense Meritorious Service Medal
Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters Air Medal with four oak leaf clusters
Aerial Achievement Medal
Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster Air Force Achievement Medal with oak leaf cluster
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant Sept. 1, 2002
First Lieutenant Sept. 1, 2004
Captain Sept. 1, 2006
Major Oct. 1, 2012
Lieutenant Colonel Jan. 1, 2016
Colonel Aug. 1, 2021
(Current as of June 2022)