Thomas Cowan:
CLASS OF 1976
Northside High SchoolClass of 1976
Ft. smith, AR
University of ArkansasClass of 1982
Fayetteville, AR
Southside High SchoolClass of 1976
Ft. smith, AR
William O. Darby Junior High SchoolClass of 1973
Ft. smith, AR
Albert Pike Elementary SchoolClass of 1970
Ft. smith, AR
Thomas's Story
Life
I hardly ever check this site anymore and have essentially moved to face book, look for Thomas L Cowan.
Since Classmates jealously edits out other competing websites links, my personal e mail is (compress together naturally)
t l c n d c at y a h o o dot com! My work e mail is
thomas dot cowan at defensegp dot com.
Be that said, however, I'm married with four kids. Oldest, 27 son (died in Nov 09 & interred at Arlington in Apr 10), daughter 23 in college, son 12 in Jr HS, and youngest is turning 7 in ES. Currently working my real job as a senior scientist at a defense contractor located in downtown DC (yes, a "Beltway Bandit"). In the meantime, a serial entrepreneur and "Angel Investor" into new business ventures (construction company; auto service center), currently leasing rental properties in northern VA, and as of May 10, just opened the first of six Five Guys Burgers and Fries franchises in the South Dakota and Lincoln, Nebraska areas.
Retired from the USAF after serving 21 years in the "grunts of the USAF", Security Forces, with all kinds of jobs (Shift Commander, Operations Officer, EST (i.e., SWAT) Team Commander, MAJCOM Staff, Squadron Commander & Base Chief of Police, Pentagon Air Staff, & Foreign Inspection Team Commander) and locations around the world - Italy, Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, Maldives, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait (Iraq "unofficially"! shuuuushhh), UAE, So Korea, Philippines, Greenland, Canada, Mexico, Bahamas, Panama & Chile.
Love traveling and still have quite a life's wish list of places still to visit (such as Great Wall of China, Petra, Machu Picchu, Galapagos Islands, Easter Island, London, Taj Mahal, Great Pyramids, Angor Wat, North & South Poles, and family line birthplace in Scotland) but actively working on it.
Doc says I shouldn't skydive anymore, but helped an Italian friend of mine celebrate his 50th b-day in freefall last year - in Italy of course, oh darn. Love riding my Harley through the beautiful back roads of Virginia! My wife, Selma, and I welcome fellow classmates to visit us if you travel to the Washington, DC / Northern Virginia area. Please drop a line to say "hi" and come have a beer & steak on us!
Military
My USAF job (now retired) was to lead the 'grunts of the USAF, security forces. Training included:
- Tactics: small unit combat, convoy security, ambush/counter-ambush, perimeter defense, long-range patrols, riot control, anti & counter-terrorism
- Weapons: expert in the 9mm & M-16, qualified on the M-60, M-203, M-79, and shotgun, certified on the solid & collapsible riot batons, stun gun, & pepper spray
- Vehicles: qualifications include most every wheeled vehicle in the USAF security forces inventory short of a tracked vehicle (HMMWV, Peacekeeper armored vehicle, suburban, jeep, M-151, M-35, ATV, patrol car, snow caterpillar, & bus)
- Leadership: positions ranged from flight commander, emergency services team (aka SWAT) commander, operations officer, staff branch chie...Expand for more
fs, contingency unit leader, squadron commander, police chief & the Air Staff
Assignments:
- 1984, Little Rock AFB, AR, 308th Security Police Squadron (SPS), Strategic Air Command, Shift Commander responsible for 45 personnel and security of priority resources
- 1987, Chanute AFB, IL, 3345th SPS, Air Training Command (ATC), initially Law Enforcement Officer-In-Charge (OIC), later Operations Officer in charge of 150 personnel. My EST team filmed for and shown USAF-wide in the Feb 89 Air Force Now film. Selected ATC's 1988 Security Police Company Grade Officer of the Year
- 1990, Rimini AS, Italy, 7401st Munitions Support Squadron, USAF in Europe (USAFE), Chief of Security Police in charge of nearly half the unit and responsible for the security of priority resources. Trained and led the only joint counter-terrorism team in USAFE during the first Persian Gulf War. Also initiated a joint program to train US and Italian personnel to earn Italian Army jump wings
- 1992, Hill AFB, UT, 75th Security Forces Squadron (SFS), Air Force Material Command, Operations Officer and second-in-command responsible for base police operations and 240 personnel. One of only 5 security officers selected to lead the forced relocation of nearly 8000 Cubans from Panama to Guantanemo Bay, Cuba, during Operation Safe Passage, 1995. Team featured USAF-wide in "Airman" magazine article about the deployment. Later went temporary duty in 1995 as Operations Officer in charge of security at Prince Abdul Aziz AS, Saudi Arabia
- 1996, Robins AFB, GA, Security Forces Directorate, USAF Reserve Command HQ, Plans and Programs Branch Chief responsible for managing security directorate's deployment teams
- 1997, 319th SFS, Grand Forks AFB, ND, Air Mobility Command, Chief of Police and Squadron Commander responsible for base-wide force protection and law enforcement, and command of 165 personnel. Augmented European Command's battle staff for the 1999 Kosovo conflict and arranged the security convoy for 3 captured US Army troops released by Serbia
- 1999, Pentagon, VA, USAF Security Forces Directorate, Air Staff, initially an Action Officer on weapons of mass destruction and asymmetric warfare. Later, Chief, Law Enforcement Plans & Programs Branch, responsible for law enforcement policy and programs for the entire USAF, to include military working dogs
- 2001, Yongsan, South Korea, 8th Military Police Brigade, US Army, Chief, Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) Division responsible as the 8MP's representative to Korea on the SOFA and customs. Led Korea's most successful counter-black marketing campaign impacting over $10M in illegal sales at the exchanges and commissaries
- 2002, Ft Belvoir, VA, Chemical & Biological Division, Defense Threat Reduction Agency, Mission Commander responsible for escorting Organisation for the Prevention of Chemical Weapons inspectors in fulfillment of an international treaty to account for and eliminate chemical weapons. Acted as a direct representative and negotiator on behalf of the US
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