Air Force ROTC - Lt Col Robert Crespo

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Lt Col Robert Crespo

Detachment Commander

Biography

Lt Col Robert M. Crespo is the commander of US Air Force ROTC Detachment 538 at Rochester Institute of Technology, New York. He is responsible for the leadership of the detachment’s active-duty cadre and support personnel in the training and development of cadets seeking commission as second lieutenants in the United States Air and Space Forces  

Lt Col Crespo entered the Air Force in May 2007 after being commissioned through the United States Air Force Academy. He graduated Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas in 2009 and subsequently assigned to the E-3 AWACS at Tinker AFB, Oklahoma. Lt Col Crespo is a command pilot with multiple deployments supporting combat and combat support operations and has earned the ratings of evaluator pilot and formal training unit instructor pilot.

Prior to this assignment Lt Col Crespo was the Director of Flight Crew Operations and Chief Test Pilot, 605th Test and Evaluation Squadron, Detachment 1, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma.   Lt Col Crespo is responsible for operational test and tactics development testing and evaluation for over 13 million dollars in avionics, mission, and airframe systems for the E-3 Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS).

EDUCATION

  • 2007 Bachelor of Science degree in Biology, US Air Force Academy, Colorado
  • 2007 Air and Space Basic Course, Maxwell AFB, Alabama (Residence)
  • 2011 Masters of Business Administration, Oklahoma Christian University, Oklahoma
  • 2013 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Alabama (Residence)
  • 2014 Advanced Instrument School, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
  • 2019 US Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas (Residence)
  • 2023 Air War College, Global School of PME, Maxwell AFB, Alabama (Correspondence)
  • 2025 Air University Professor of Aerospace Studies Instructor Course, Maxwell AFB, Alabama (Residence)

ASSIGNMENTS

  • May 2007 – May 2008, Assistant to the Director of Military Training, United States Air Force Academy Preparatory School, USAF Academy, Colorado
  • May 2008 –November 2009, Student Pilot, 80th Operations Support Squadron, Sheppard AFB, Texas.
  • December 2009 – July 2014, E-3 AWACS Instructor Aircraft Commander, 960th Airborne Air Control Squadron, Tinker AFB, Oklahoma
  • July 2014 – September 2015, E-3 Formal Training Unit Instructor Aircraft Commander, 552d Training Squadron, Tinker AFB, Oklahoma
  • September 2015 – September 2016, Director of Training, 962d Airborne Air Control Squadron, Joint-Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska
  • October 2016 – June 2017, 3rd Wing Chief of E-3, Weapons and Tactics, 3d Operations Support Squadron, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska
  • June 2017 – May 2018, Executive Officer, 3rd Wing, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska
  • June 2018 – July 2019, Student, US Army Command and General Staff College, Kansas
  • August 2019 – July 2020, Battlefield Airborne Communications Node (BACN) Functional Area Manager, Langley AFB, Virginia
  • August 2020 – May 2021, Branch Chief, Airborne C2 Systems, Langley AFB, Virginia
  • May 2021 – March 2022, Assistant Director of Operations, 963d Airborne Air Control Squadron, Tinker AFB, Oklahoma
  • April 2022 – January 2023, Director of Operations, 960th Airborne Air Control Squadron, Tinker AFB, OKLAHOMA
  • February 2023 – December 2024, Deputy Director of Operations, 605th Test and Evaluation Squadron/Detachment 1, Tinker AFB, OKLAHOMA
  • January 2024 – June 2025, DRAGON Director/Chief E-3G Test Pilot, 605th Test and Evaluation Squadron/Detachment 1, Tinker AFB, OKLAHOMA
  • June 2025 – Present, Commander AFROTC Detachment 538, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, New York

FLIGHT INFORMATION

  • Rating:  Command Pilot
  • Flight hours: 3,500
  • Combat Hours: 1500
  • Aircraft flown: T-6A, T-38C, E-3B/C/G

MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS

  • Meritorious Service Medal with 2 device
  • Air and Space Force Commendation Medal with 1 device
  • Air and Space Force Achievement Medal with 1 device
  • Air Medal with 4 devices

EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION

  • Second Lieutenant, May 2007
  • First Lieutenant, May 2009
  • Captain, May 2011
  • Major, March 2017
  • Lieutenant Colonel, January 2021