Brig. Gen. Evan Dertien, director of air, space and cyberspace operations at Air Force Materiel Command, has been appointed as commander of the Air Force Research Laboratory. Gen. David Goldfein, chief of staff at the U.S. Air Force and 2020 Wash100 Award winner, announced Dertien's new assignment in a press release published Thursday.
In his new capacity, Dertien will oversee science and technology program and externally funded research-and-development programs at the AFMC-run laboratory at Wright-Patterson AF Base in Ohio. He started his military career in 1993 and served in three combat deployments as an F-15 pilot after completing a Euro-NATO joint jet pilot training program.
Dertien previously worked as an initial cadre instructor pilot for the first operational F-22 aircraft. The AF Test Pilot School graduate also led the 96th Test Wing in Florida. He has logged more than 3,000 flight hours, including more than 180 hours in combat missions.