Indian-American Ravi Chaudhary has made headlines for assuming one of the top leadership roles in the Pentagon as the assistant secretary of defense for the US Air Force. Chaudhary’s impressive educational background includes a Doctorate from Georgetown University in executive leadership and innovation, an M.S. in Industrial Engineering from St. Mary’s University, an M.A. from Air University in Operational Arts and Military Science, and a B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from the Air Force Academy of the United States.
Chaudhary has a wealth of experience in the Air Force, having served as an Air Force pilot and systems engineer. He also holds multiple certifications from the Department of Defense in systems engineering, program management, and test and evaluation. With his extensive qualifications and experience, Chaudhary is well-equipped to lead the US Air Force into the future.
The confirmation of Chaudhary as the assistant secretary of defense for the US Air Force is a significant milestone for Indian-Americans, and his appointment has been widely celebrated. Follow this post to learn more about Chaudhary’s career trajectory and impressive qualifications.
From flying to engineering, a look at Chaudhary’s brilliant career
The newly-confirmed assistant secretary also served in the US Air Force between 1993 and 2015 as a C-17 pilot. He was a part of multiple American military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. He also performed ground deployment by serving as the director of the personnel recovery centre at multi-national corps in Iraq.
Chaudhary is also the former senior executive at the US Department of Transportation, where he worked as the Director of Advanced Programmes and Innovation, Office of Commercial Space at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). As a NASA fellow, he was deeply involved in space launch operations for the global positioning system (GPS), as well as in International Space Station protection activities. During the Obama presidency, he joined the President’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and played a key role in advising the POTUS about initiatives that can boost support for veterans in the AAPI community.
