Ryan C. Pope graduated from The Citadel in 1999 with a Bachelor of Art degree in Political Science. He was commissioned a 2ndLt in May of 1999 and after completing the Basic School in January 2000, received orders to Pensacola, Florida. 2ndLt Pope completed primary training at VT-3 and selected the multi-engine pipeline. 1stLt Pope completed advanced flight training in October 2001 at Corpus Christi, Texas.
1stLt Pope completed KC-130 training, at VMGRT-253, in the fall of 2002 and was assigned to VMGR-252, MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina. During this assignment he served as the Ground Training Officer, and Flight Duty Officer. Additionally, he was deployed on multiple occasions in support of the 24 MEU and 26 MEU. Capt Pope was selected to transition to the KC-130J and become a member of the operational evaluation (OPEVAL) team under VX-20 in Patuxent River, Maryland. Following completion of the KC-130J OPEVAL, Capt Pope became one of the first officers to be upgraded to Aircraft Commander in the new aircraft. Upon conclusion of his first tour, Capt Pope had obtained designation as a section lead and multiple instructor qualifications.
Capt Pope next volunteered for a Forward Air Controller (FAC) billet with 3rd Battalion 6th Marines and was deployed to Al Anbar, Iraq from August 2005 to March 2006. During the course of this deployment Capt Pope participated in Operation Steel Curtain, Operation Iron Fist and accrued over fifty combat controls.
Following his tour with 3rd Battalion 6th Marines, Capt Pope returned to VMGR-252 and assumed the billet of Quality Assurance Officer. Capt Pope was quickly deployed to support non-combatant evacuation operations in Lebanon and upon returning he was selected to attend the Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI) course. After graduating, Capt Pope deployed to Al Asad, Iraq from July 2007 to February 2008.
In July of 2008, Captain Pope was assigned to MAWTS-1, MCAS Yuma as the KC-130 Division Head. During the course of this assignment, he was the program lead for the KC-130 Training and Readiness Manual, the KC-130J Air Naval Tactics Techniques and Procedures (ANTTP), the ATP-56B (NATO air-to-air refueling manual), and served as the FINEX coordinator. Additionally Capt Pope created training materials and TTPs for the KC-130J Harvest HAWK. While at MAWTS-1 he was promoted to the rank of Major on 1 Sep, 2009.
Maj Pope left MAWTS-1 in July of 2011 and was next assigned to attend resident Command and Staff College at Quantico, Virginia. He was a Distinguished Graduate and obtained a Master Degree in Military Studies.
Following school, Maj Pope again returned to VMGR-252 and served as the Operations Officer from June 2012 to Jun 2013 when he then assumed the responsibility of VMGR-252, Detachment Alpha, Officer in Charge. Major Pope then deployed to Afghanistan from July 2013 to February 2014.
Maj Pope’s personal decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medal with numeral “4”, the Navy Commendation Medal with combat “V” device and 1 gold star, and the Navy Achievement Medal with 2 gold stars.