Colonel Ernesto M. DiVittorio is the Wing Commander, 366th Fighter Wing, Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho. He serves a diverse operational fighter wing equipped with F-15E and F-15SG fighter aircraft. The wing is comprised of 4,200 military and civilian members that support 18 squadrons including a squadron comprised of members from the Republic of Singapore Air Force. It hosts the 726th Air Control Squadron – one of only three active-duty Air Force control reporting centers in the U.S. – and the Idaho Air National Guard 266th Range Squadron. The wing operates, maintains and develops the Mountain Home Range Complex comprised of 9,016 square miles of associated airspace and 122,000 acres of land space used for two air-to-ground training ranges, five no-drop target complexes and 30 multi-size electronic combat sites. The command also includes the 390th Electronic Combat Squadron, which flies U.S. Navy EA-18G Growlers at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington.
Col. DiVittorio entered the Air Force in 1997 as a distinguished graduate of the AFROTC program at the Illinois Institute of Technology. He is also a distinguished graduate of Air Command and Staff College, a graduate of the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, and a National Security Fellow at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. He has served as the Deputy Commander of the 4th Operations Group and Commander for the 4th Operations Support Squadron "Silver Hawks,". He is a former airpower strategist and operational planner in Checkmate at Headquarters Air Force and was the Deputy Director of Force Readiness in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. His previous assignment was as the vice commander of the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing and then Commander of the 332nd Air Expeditionary Group, Southwest Asia while a student in Cybersecurity: The Intersection of Policy and Technology at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.
Col DiVittorio is a Master Navigator with more than 2,350 flying hours, including 710 combat hours over Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria in support of Operations SOUTHERN WATCH, IRAQI FREEDOM, ENDURING FREEDOM, INHERENT RESOLVE, and RESOLUTE SUPPORT.
EDUCATION
1997 Bachelor of Science, Civil Engineering, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, Ill.
2004 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell Air Force Base (AFB), Ala.
2009 Master of Military Arts and Sciences w/Honors, American Military University, Charles Town, W.Va.
2010 Master of Operational Art & Science, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2011 Master of Philosophy in Military Strategy, School of Advanced Air & Space Studies, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2018 National Security Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Cambridge, Mass.
2021 Cybersecurity: The Intersection of Policy and Technology, Cohort 21A, Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Cambridge, Mass.
2021 Joint Professional Military Education II, Joint and Combined Warfighting School, Norfolk, Va.
ASSIGNMENTS
1. February 1998 - July 1998, Special Assistant to the Commander, AFROTC Detachment 195, Chicago, Ill.
2. July 1998 - January 1999, Student, pilot training, Columbus Air Force Base, Miss.
3. January 1999 - September 2000, Student, navigator training, Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla.
4. September 2000 - August 2001, Student, F-15E formal training unit, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C.
5. August 2001 - May 2004, F-15E Weapon Systems Officer, Chief of Training, Chief of Strike, 336th Fighter Squadron, Seymour Johnson AFB, N.C.
6. May 2004 - February 2007, F-15E Evaluator Weapon Systems Officer, Chief of Scheduling, Flight Commander, 492nd Fighter Squadron, then Assistant Chief F-15E Standardization and Evaluation, 48th Operations Group, Royal Air Force Lakenheath, United Kingdom
7. February 2007 - January 2008, Assistant Wing Program Manager, F-15E Formal Training Unit Instructor Weapon Systems Officer, 4th Fighter Wing, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C. (September 2007 – January 2008, Executive Officer, 455th Expeditionary Operations Group, Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan)
8.January 2008 - July 2009, Director of Staff, 4th Operations Group, Seymour Johnson Air Force base, N.C
9. July 2009 - June 2010, Student, Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.
10. June 2010 - June 2011, Student, School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.
11. June 2011 - June 2013, Strategist, Checkmate, Headquarters Air Force, Pentagon, Washington, D.C.
12. July 2013 - December 2013, Assistant Director of Operations and Detachment Commander, 335th Fighter Squadron, Seymour Johnson AFB, N.C.
13. December 2013 - February 2015, Director of Operations, 334th Fighter Squadron, Seymour Johnson AFB, N.C.
14. February 2015 - November 2016, Commander, 4th Operations Support Squadron, Seymour Johnson AFB, N.C.
15. November 2016 - July 2017, Deputy Commander, 4th Operations Group, Seymour Johnson AFB, N.C.
16. July 2017 - May 2018, National Security Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Cambridge, Mass.
17. May 2018 - May 2020, Deputy Director, Force Readiness, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Pentagon, Washington, D.C.
18. June 2020 - October 2020, Vice Commander, 332d Air Expeditionary Wing, Southwest Asia
19. October 2020 - August 2021, Commander, 332d Expeditionary Operations Group, Southwest Asia
20. August 2021 - Present, Commander, 366th Fighter Wing, Mountain Home AFB, Idaho
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
May 2018 - May 2020, Deputy Director, Force Readiness, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Pentagon, Washington D.C.
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: Master Navigator
Flight Hours: more than 2,350 including more than 710 combat hours
Aircraft flown: T-37, T-34, T-1, T-39, A/T-38, and F-15E
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Defense Superior Service Medal
Legion of Merit
Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters
Air Medal with six oak leaf clusters
Aerial Achievement Medal with oak leaf cluster
Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
Afghanistan Campaign Medal
Iraq Campaign Medal
Inherent Resolve Campaign Medal
Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
Nuclear Deterrence Operations Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
NATO Medal (ISAF)
PUBLICATIONS
Incentivizing Service: Fulfilling the Needs of a Nation
Should I Stay or Should I Go: Building a Mental Construct for Senior Officers Contemplating Leaving the Service over
Matters of Policy
CSAR eXit: The Future of Air Force Combat Search and Rescue
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS AND AFFILIATIONS
Air Force Association
Red River Valley Fighter Pilots Association
(Current as of 27 August 2021)