Col. Sean M. Jones is the Deputy Wing Commander of the 71st Flying Training Wing, Vance Air Force Base, Oklahoma. The wing consists of more than 2,700 personnel conducting undergraduate pilot training for more than 300 U.S. Air Force and allied student pilots each year. The wing operates more than 185 aircraft, flies more than 55,000 sorties annually and logs more than 80,000 flying hours each year.
Colonel Jones was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, and raised in Springdale, Arkansas. Colonel Jones earned his pilot wings at Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training, Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas, in 2006.
Since pilot training, Colonel Jones has served in four flying assignments. He started his career as a T-38C first assignment instructor pilot. Then, he went on to fly the A-10C at Moody AFB, Georgia and flew the A-10C in combat operations supporting Operation ENDURING FREEDOM.
Next, he was an Introduction to Fighter Fundamentals instructor pilot/Flight Commander at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. During this flying assignment, he was selected to be the Aide-de-Camp to the Air Education and Training Command's commander. Following Randolph Air Force Base, his assignment was as a Combat Air Force Fellow at the Pentagon.
Colonel Jones has served as A-10C 4-ship Flight Lead, T-38C Instructor Pilot, Chief of Mission Planning/Readiness/Scheduling, Flight Commander, Aide-de-Camp, Commander’s Action Group Officer, CAF Fellow, Headquarters Air Force Precision Strike Requirements Officer, and as the Squadron Commander of the 459th Flying Training Squadron, Sheppard Air Force Base.
EDUCATION
2004 Bachelor of Science, Electrical Engineering, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Arizona 2005 Air and Space Basic Course, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama
2009 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama
2012 Master of Science, Aerospace Science Technology, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Florida
2015 Air Command and Staff College in correspondence, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama
2017 Combat Air Force Fellowship, Pentagon, Washington D.C.
2024 Master of Science, Air War College, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama
ASSIGNMENTS
1. February 2005 – April 2006, Student, Undergraduate Pilot Training, 80th Operations Support Squadron, Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas
2. April 2006 – January 2010, T-38A/C Instructor Pilot/Standardizations and Evaluations, Chief of Scheduling, 90th Flying Training Squadron, Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas
3. January 2010 – August 2010, A-10C Student Pilot, 355th Fighter Training Squadron, Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona
4. August 2010 – December 2013, A-10C 4-ship Flight Lead/Flight Commander, 74th Fighter Squadron, Moody Air Force Base, Georgia
5. December 2013 – June 2015, T-38C Introduction to Fighter Fundamentals Instructor Pilot/Flight Commander, 435th Fighter Training Squadron, Randolph Air Force Base, Texas
6. June 2015 – July 2016, Aide-de-Camp to the Commander of Air Education and Training Command, Headquarters Air Education and Training Command, Randolph Air Force Base, Texas
7. July 2016 – July 2017, Commander’s Action Group Officer, Headquarters Air Education and Training Command, Randolph Air Force Base, Texas
8. July 2017 – July 2019, Combat Air Force Fellowship, A5RC, Pentagon, Washington D.C.
9. July 2019 – April 2020, T-38C Introduction to Fighter Fundamentals Instructor Pilot/Assistant Director of Operations, 88th Fighter Training Squadron, Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas
10. April 2020 – May 2021, T-6 Evaluation Pilot/Director of Operations, 459th Flying Training Squadron, Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas
11. May 2021 – May 2023, Commander, 459th Flying Training Squadron, Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas
12. May 2023 – Jun 2024, Air War College, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama
13. Jun 2024 – Mar 2025, Deputy Division Chief Aircrew Management, AF/A3TF, Pentagon, Washington D.C.
14. Mar 2025 – Nov 2025, Division Chief Aircrew Management, AF/A3TF, Pentagon, Washington D.C.
15. Nov 2025 – July 2026, Military Deputy, Training & Force Management, AF/A34, Pentagon, Washington D.C.
16. July 2026 – Present, 71st Flying Training Wing Deputy Commander, Vance Air Force Base, Oklahoma
FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: Command Pilot
Flight hours: Over 3,400
Aircraft flown: A-10C, T-38C/A, T-37, T-6
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Legion of Merit
Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters
Air Medal with twelve oak leaf clusters
Air Force Commendation Medal with two oak leaf clusters
OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS
2004 Distinguished Graduate, Reserve Officer Training Corps, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Arizona
2010 Distinguished Graduate, A-10C B-Course, Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona
2014 Distinguished Graduate, T-38C IFF Upgrade Instructor Pilot Program, Randolph Air Force Base, Texas
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant -- Dec. 17, 2004
First Lieutenant -- Dec. 25, 2006
Captain -- Dec. 25, 2008
Major -- May 1, 2015
Lieutenant Colonel -- Oct. 1, 2018
Colonel -- Sept. 1, 2024
(Current as of March 2026)