A Civil Air Patrol cadet commander who became a U.S. Navy intelligence officer is bringing three decades of leadership experience to CAP’s Rocky Mountain Region.
Col. John Rhoades, one of the region’s vice commanders, will assume command of the five-state region Oct. 4 at the Colorado Wing Conference. He succeeds Col. Jason R. Hess, who has led the region for the past three years.
“As a naval officer and professional pilot, Col. Rhoades brings discipline and operational excellence to the Civil Air Patrol Senior Advisory Group,” said Maj. Gen. Regena M. Aye, CAP’s national commander/CEO, in announcing Rhoades as the next Rocky Mountain Region commander. “His experiences will enhance our efforts to strengthen accountability and safety.”
Rhoades serves in the U.S. Navy Reserves as an intelligence officer assigned to the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and U.S. Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) Joint Intelligence Directorate.
He is a qualified Information warfare officer, with previous assignments that include the Office of Naval Intelligence and the Defense Intelligence Agency’s Missile and Space Intelligence Center. He also deployed abroad with Patrol Squadron 69 in support of Operation Pacific Eagle.
“His life of service, whether in the U.S. Navy or CAP, has shaped him into a leader who doesn’t seek recognition for his work but rather opportunities to elevate others,” Aye said. “He leads with humility and is passionate about investing in others’ success. Like other former cadets, he wants to ensure CAP is strong in the future.”
Aye said Rhoades’ “strategic acumen” will help build that future.
“His focus on stewardship and accountability aligns with our Year of Ownership,” she said. “He’s not going to be just a member of the team — he’s going to be a force that helps us accomplish our objectives.”
In his role as region vice commander since January 2024, Rhoades has assisted and advised Hess in leading and managing more than 4,000 volunteers and more than $30 million in assets across Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming to execute CAP’s three-fold core programs of emergency services; aviation, space, and cyber education; and youth leadership development.
“CAP has provided me with so many opportunities in my life, and during my tenure as region commander I really want to focus on providing membership with the tools and opportunities to grow and excel as individuals and as an organization,” he said.
“I am continually amazed at the dedication and excellence our members exhibit and am humbled to be able to serve them as the next Rocky Mountain Region commander.”
Rhoades brings CAP leadership experience in three wings to the region. He commanded the Colorado Wing from2019-2023 and remained active in the wing’s operations and emergency services missions as a check pilot and mission pilot.
Rhoades joined CAP in 1994 as a cadet in the Louisiana Wing. Shortly thereafter, he moved to Texas and was a charter member of the Nacogdoches Composite Squadron, where he served as cadet commander and earned his Brig. Gen. Billy Mitchell Award.
In 1996, he moved to Alabama and transferred to the Bessemer Composite Squadron, earning his Gen. Ira C. Eaker Award and serving as squadron cadet commander, chair of the Alabama Wing Cadet Advisory Council, and cadet commander of the 1997 Alabama/Mississippi Wing Encampment.
He also participated in the International Air Cadet Exchange Program, visiting Israel.
As an adult member, Rhoades has served in numerous staff positions at the squadron, group, and wing levels, including Colorado Military Academy Cadet Squadron commander from 2018-2019, Bessemer squadron commander from 2011-2015, and Alabama Wing chief of staff from 2015-2016.
One of Rhoades’ most significant missions involved the Colorado Wing’s response to COVID-19, where the wing partnered with the state to fly personal protective equipment to rural airports throughout Colorado.
“This mission required a tremendous amount of coordination both inside and outside of CAP under very difficult circumstances and really demonstrated our members’ desire to serve our communities,” he said.
Rhoades completed his primary flight training as a CAP cadet. He now has more than 13,500 hours of flight time, including 2,300 hours in command of Boeing 757/767 and more than 2,800 hours in general aviation aircraft.
Rhoades is employed with United Airlines, where he is the fleet technical captain for the B757/767 fleet and previously served as simulator instructor for over seven years. He also holds a designation as a training center evaluator under Federal Aviation Administration Part 142.
He holds Airline Transport Certificates issued by the FAA, the United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority, and the Japan Civil Aeronautics Bureau with CL-65, A320, B757 and B767 type ratings.
He also holds a commercial glider certificate and is an active certificated flight instructor, certificated flight instructor-instrument, and multi-engine instructor.
Rhoades has brought that operational experience back to Civil Air Patrol, where he is active in providing as many check rides to CAP pilots as his schedule permits.
“I’d say that the area of operations that I am most passionate about is the cadet flight training program,” he said. “I learned to fly as a CAP cadet and am now teaching my oldest daughter to fly now as a cadet in our airplanes.”
He added, “I think the opportunities that the organization provides to cadets who are interested in pursuing careers in aviation and aerospace is really something that makes CAP unique, and I would like to emphasize that during my tenure.”
Rhoades holds Master ratings in Command, Standards and Evaluations, Cadet Programs, and Personnel, as well as senior ratings in Operations and Emergency Services. He is also a command pilot, check pilot examiner, and incident commander and has earned the Master Ground Team Badge and Emergency Medical Technician Badge.
Top CAP awards include one Distinguished Service Award (2023) and two Meritorious Service Awards (2015, 2019) as an adult member and two Commander’s Commendation Awards-Wing (1996, 1997) as a cadet.
Rhoades and his wife, Train, have three children — daughters Janae and Jaya, cadets in the Air Academy Cadet Squadron at the U.S. Air Force Academy, and a son, John, who plans to join CAP as soon as he turns 12.
