Robert McLaughlin, CAPT, USN
Military Professor
National Security Affairs
Profile
Captain Bob McLaughlin graduated from Mount Desert Island H.S. and the University of Maine at Orono with a Bachelor of Science degree and played Division I basketball for the Maine Black Bears. After his commission as a Naval Officer, he earned his Aviator “Wings of Gold” and his first assignment was a 3 year tour in Sigonella, Italy flying with the VR-24 “Golden Eagles.” After transitioning to the A-6E INTRUDER, he completed 2 operational tours with the VA-52 “Knight Riders”, 1 tour with the VA-165 “Boomers”, and 1 tour with Carrier Air Wing Nine staff deployed on the aircraft carrier USS NIMITZ.
Captain McLaughlin transitioned to the FA-18C Hornet and joined the VFA-27 “Royal Maces” as the Executive Officer in January 1999, flying out of Atsugi, Japan and onboard the aircraft carrier USS KITTY HAWK. During an emergency deployment to the Persian Gulf, he was awarded an Air Medal (Strike/Fighter First Award) for combat missions over Iraq and assumed command of the “Royal Maces” in May 2000. He was presented with the Meritorious Service Medal for outstanding leadership and managerial skills as the Commanding Officer of VFA-27 in August 2001.
Captain McLaughlin received orders to his home state as the Executive Officer of Naval Air Station Brunswick, Maine and was awarded his second Meritorious Service Medal for consistent levels of high performance and achievement. He was then “hand-picked” to be the Commanding Officer of Naval Station Newport, RI and the Officer-in-Charge of Fleet Week 2005 in NYC and earned the Legion of Merit for “unsurpassed excellence” in leading these complex organizations for over 2 years with outstanding results.
Captain McLaughlin was chosen for the prestigious Federal Executive Fellowship (FEF) at the Fletcher School at Tufts University in Medford, MA and follow-on orders as the Joint Action Control Officer at the Pentagon. He volunteered for an Individual Augmentee (IA) billet on an Embedded Provincial Reconstruction Team (EPRT) as the Governance and Public Works advisor for the city of Fullajah, Iraq. He completed his 18 month “Boots on Ground” inter-agency tour in Iraq in November, 2008.
He has earned a Master’s degree in Information Technology Management from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California and in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College (NWC) in Newport, RI. Additionally, he completed Joint Professional Military Education Phase II at the Joint Forces Staff College in Norfolk, VA and was the only Naval Officer to complete the DoD Executive Training Program in 2004 at Syracuse University, NY. He also completed a Federal Executive Fellowship for the International Security Studies Program at the Fletcher School at Tufts University in August 2006.