Brig. Gen. Ricardo “Rico” Aponte USAF
Last Name: Aponte
First Name: Ricardo
Nickname: Rico
Medals and Honors: Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal w/3 OLC, Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf clusters, Order of Merit - System of Cooperation of the American Air Forces (SICOFAA)
ACNSL Offices and Committees: former COO
Rank: Brigadier General
Service/Department: U.S. Air Force
Last or Significant Assignment: Director (J7) Experimentation and Innovation Directorate, US Southern Command
Areas of Experience: Western Hemisphere Politico - Military Affairs, Air War Doctrine, Military History
Articles, Books and Publications: Op-ed: MOAA How DOD Can Fix Its Lack of Hispanic Leaders
NBC News: We Need to Recognize Latinos Long History of Military Service
A True Friendship- A Hostage Drama by Rico Aponte (Fiction 2008)
Ricardo “Rico” Aponte is a retired brigadier general in the U.S. Air Force. He has served as Chief Operating Officer of the American College of National Security Leaders.
A graduate with Masters of History at Claremont Graduate University, Brig. Gen. Aponte is a writer on military history, presenting his findings at conferences and public events. He is also a fellow at the American College of National Security Leaders (ACNSL).
In a thirty-four year career, he was a Citizen Airman, Command Pilot flying F-111 fighters, and 25-year experience in Politico-Military Affairs with a Latin American specialty. For eleven years he served as an Admissions Liaison Officer for the AFROTC and Air Force Academy.
In 2007, he retired as the Director of Innovation and Experimentation (J7) of U.S. Southern Command where he also served as Deputy Director of Operations during the U.S. 2004 response to Haitian unrest. He is a graduate of Air War College, the National Security Course at the Maxwell School of Syracuse University, and the U.S. Marine Corps Weapons and Tactics School. As Chief Operating Officer at ACNSL, he ran operations striving to inspire and inform a new generation of national security leaders. He currently serves as President and CEO of the Hispanic Veterans Leadership Alliance.