Samuel Paparo

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Samuel Paparo
Born	1964 (age 61–62) Morton, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Allegiance	United States
Branch	United States Navy
Service years	1987–present
Rank	Admiral
Commands	United States Indo-Pacific Command United States Pacific Fleet United States Naval Forces Central Command United States Fifth Fleet Combined Maritime Forces Carrier Strike Group 10 Carrier Air Wing Seven VFA-106 Provincial Reconstruction Team VFA-195[1]
Conflicts	War in Afghanistan Iraq War
Awards	Navy Distinguished Service Medal (2) Defense Superior Service Medal Legion of Merit (4) Bronze Star
Alma mater	Villanova University (BA) Old Dominion University (MA) Naval Postgraduate School (MS)

Samuel John Paparo Jr. (born 1964) is a United States Navy four-star admiral serving as the 27th Commander of United States Indo-Pacific Command, the nation’s oldest and largest geographic combatant command.[2] A TOPGUN-trained naval aviator with combat experience spanning three decades, Paparo has commanded at every level from fighter squadron to combatant command, with the rare distinction of having led forces both from the cockpit and on the ground in combat.[3] He oversees approximately 380,000 military and civilian personnel responsible for all U.S. military activities across 36 nations, 14 time zones, and a region encompassing more than half the world’s population.[4]

Paparo grew up in Morton, Pennsylvania, a working-class borough in Delaware County outside Philadelphia.[5] He is the son of a former enlisted Marine and the grandson of a World War II enlisted sailor. He attended Cardinal O'Hara High School in Springfield, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Villanova University in 1987 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science.[5][6] He was commissioned through the Aviation Officer Candidate School at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. Paparo subsequently earned a Master of Arts in International Studies from Old Dominion University and a Master of Science in Systems Analysis from the Naval Postgraduate School. He is a graduate of the Air Command and Staff College, Air War College, Naval War College, and the Joint and Combined Warfighting School at the Joint Forces Staff College.[4]

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Paparo earned his wings as a naval aviator through the Navy’s Strike pipeline and was later designated a Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor (SFTI) as a graduate of the Navy Fighter Weapons School, known as TOPGUN.[5] He has logged over 6,000 flight hours in the F-14 Tomcat, F-15 Eagle, and F/A-18 Hornet and Super Hornet, and has made more than 1,100 carrier landings.[5] His early fleet assignments included Fighter Squadron 14 (VF-14) aboard USS John F. Kennedy and USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, and Strike Fighter Squadron 15 (VFA-15) aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt and USS Enterprise.[4] He also served on exchange duty with the U.S. Air Force, flying the F-15C Eagle with the 71st Fighter Squadron, deploying to Saudi Arabia and Iceland.[4]

On the opening night of Operation Enduring Freedom in October 2001, Paparo flew combat missions over Afghanistan, destroying a surface-to-air missile site near Kandahar during the initial strikes of the war.[3]

From 2004 to 2006, Paparo commanded Strike Fighter Squadron 195 (VFA-195), the “Dambusters,” stationed at Naval Air Facility Atsugi, Japan, as part of the Navy’s only permanently forward-deployed carrier air wing.[4][7] The Dambusters, named for their destruction of the Hwacheon Dam in the Korean War, deployed with the USS Kitty Hawk Strike Group, maintaining a rapid-response posture across the Western Pacific.[7]

In a highly unusual assignment for a naval aviator, Paparo commanded the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Nuristan Province, Afghanistan, from 2007 to 2008, serving alongside the 3rd Brigade, 10th Mountain Division and the 173rd Airborne Brigade.[4][8] Nuristan was among the most remote and contested regions of the Afghan theater, bordering Pakistan’s tribal areas.[3] Paparo led a joint force of over 100 soldiers, sailors, airmen, and civilians, overseeing counterinsurgency and development operations in terrain so austere that resupply was often possible only by helicopter.[8]

Under his command, the PRT supervised construction of the Titin Bridge linking Nuristan’s western and central valleys, executed an unprecedented intra-theater relocation to establish the province’s first permanent PRT presence, and developed a Small Rewards Program that resulted in the collection of heavy weapons, small arms, rocket-propelled grenades, and a shoulder-fired thermobaric weapon.[8] Paparo’s approach emphasized engagement with local tribal leaders and a patient counterinsurgency philosophy focused on winning the trust of the population.[3]

The assignment later drew attention in Jake Tapper’s book The Outpost (2012), an account of Combat Outpost Keating in Nuristan, where Paparo is portrayed navigating the complex tribal dynamics of the province, mediating between warring local factions, and working to establish enough stability for civilian development organizations to operate.[3] Tapper’s account depicts Paparo as deeply committed to the counterinsurgency model, wary of heavy-handed actions that risked alienating the population the coalition was trying to protect.[3]

Paparo served with the U.S. Navy's Carrier Air Wing 7 (CVW-7) as deputy air wing commander from October 2009 through August 2011, embarked aboard USS Dwight D. Eisenhower.[7] The air wing, composed of eight squadrons, included "F/A-18C/E/F Hornets and Super Hornets, E-2C Hawkeye airborne command and control aircraft, EA-6B Prowler electronic warfare aircraft, SH-60F/HH-60H Seahawk helicopters, and C-2A Greyhound logistics aircraft", with 1,500 enlisted personnel and officers assigned.[7] He subsequently took command of CVW-7 in August 2011, relieving Captain Roy J. Kelley,[7] a position he remained in until December 2012.[9][verification needed]

Paparo then went on to command Carrier Strike Group 10 (CSG-10) from July 2017,[10][verification needed] until March 2018,[11] a group comprising the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, a carrier air wing (CVW 3, which included substantial fixed and rotary wing airframes and personnel, including early warning and electronic attack units), and guided missile cruisers USS San Jacinto, USS Vella Gulf, and USS Monterey, and Destroyer Squadron (DESRON, with its guided missile destroyers USS Stout, USS Oscar Austin, and USS McFaul).[11] In addition to a variety of global training and exercise events, Paparo's forces provided intensive support for "Defense Support to Civilian Authorities (DSCA) operations", following Hurricane Irma's impact on the Florida keys in September 2017 (overseeing a task force of multiple units that cleared roads, and restored boat ramp and flight operations at Naval Air Station Key West, and electrical, water, and air conditioning services to vital military and civilian buildings in coordination with the Florida National Guard and FEMA).[11]

After being elevated to the rank of U.S. Navy Vice Admiral, Paparo served as commander of the United States Fifth Fleet, headquartered in Bahrain, overseeing "all U.S. naval forces stationed throughout the Middle East", including coordination of the 33-country international naval coalition that "oversees safety of those waters and supports operations in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan".[5] In addition, he served as director of operations of the United States Central Command out of MacDill Air Force Base, Florida.[11] and went on to command the Combined Maritime Forces.[when?][12][13][verification needed]

As of 5 May 2021, he had been elevated to the rank of four-star admiral in the United States Navy,[when?] and was serving as the 64th commander of the United States Pacific Fleet (succeeding Admiral John C. Aquilino).[14][15][clarification needed][verification needed]

In July 2023, Paparo was nominated for reappointment to the grade of admiral and assignment as the commander of United States Indo-Pacific Command.[16][17] He assumed command from Aquilino during a change of command ceremony on 3 May 2024,[18] becoming the 27th commander of Indo-Pacific Command, the largest geographic command in the U.S. military.[19]

He stated in November 2024 that the delivery of air-to-air missile systems to Ukraine and Israel since the start of the conflicts there has been significantly reducing the stock available in the Indo-Pacific Command area, threatening its ability to counter China.[20]

In 2023 and 2025 Paparo was considered as a candidate to become chief of naval operations. He was interviewed in July 2023 but Lisa Franchetti was selected for the role. After Franchetti was removed in February 2025 by President Donald Trump, Paparo was considered as a possible replacement, but he reportedly declined.[21]

He is married to Maureen, and they have six children. Paparo is Catholic and has been a member of the Knights of Columbus since February 2005.[22]

	Naval Aviator insignia
	Command at Sea insignia

	Navy Distinguished Service Medal with award star[23][24]
	Defense Superior Service Medal
	Legion of Merit (29 March 2018[11]), with three gold award stars
	Bronze Star Medal
	Defense Meritorious Service Medal
	Meritorious Service Medal with two award stars
	Air Medal with one bronze service star, Combat V and bronze Strike/Flight numeral "6"
	Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal
	Air Force Commendation Medal
	Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal
	Army Achievement Medal
	Joint Meritorious Unit Award with oak leaf cluster
	Navy Unit Commendation with service star
	Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation with service star
	Navy "E" Ribbon with three Battle E devices
	Combat Readiness Medal
	National Defense Service Medal with service star
	Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
	Iraq Campaign Medal with service star
	Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
	Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
	Armed Forces Service Medal
	Humanitarian Service Medal
	Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal
	Navy Sea Service Deployment Ribbon with one silver and three bronze service stars
	Navy and Marine Corps Overseas Service Ribbon with three service stars
	The Khalifiyyeh Order of Bahrain, 2nd Class
	NATO Medal for service with ISAF with service star
	Navy Expert Rifleman Medal
	Navy Expert Pistol Shot Medal

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• Media related to Samuel J. Paparo, Jr. at Wikimedia Commons