Detachment 145 Education Officer
Captain Brandon K. Gehrke serves as the Education Officer for Air Force Reserve Officer Training Detachment 145, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL. In this capacity, he manages cadre instructor training, all course syllabi and gradebooks, and is the Test Control Officer and Commanders Self Assessment Program Manager. Captain Gehrke began his military career in April 2009 as an enlisted member. Following basic military training, he attended the F-16 Tactical Aviation Maintenance Course, Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas. After serving 10 years, he was accepted into Officer Training School and earned his commission in 2019. As an officer, he performed duties as a Program Manager coordinating critical aircraft parts supply for the A-10 Warthog and managed $1.7B in defense contracts. He also served as the Operations Officer and Program Manager for the largest ACAT II A-10 contract and lead a 22-member cross-functional team to extend the service life of 281 aircraft in 8 squadrons across 6 MAJCOMs flying over 78K flying hours per year. From September 2010 to April 2011 Captain Gehrke was deployed to Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan as the 455th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron’s Flagship F-16 Dedicated Crew Chief in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. His assignments include Hill AFB UT, Al-Udeid AB Qatar, Manas AB Kyrgyzstan, Kunsan AB Korea, Aviano AB Italy, Nellis AFB “Thunderbirds” NV, and NAS Pensacola FL.