Lieutenant Colonel Jones is a native of Texas. He enlisted in 1999 into the United States Marine Corps Reserve as an M-198 Artillery Mechanic and was commissioned in December 2003 after graduating from Texas A&M University with a Bachelor’s Degree in History. Upon completion of The Basic School in March 2004, Lieutenant Colonel Jones reported to Naval Air Station Pensacola followed by Corpus Christi for flight training. He was designated a Naval Aviator in August 2006 and selected as a CH-53D pilot.
In July 2006, Lieutenant Colonel Jones reported to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 463, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, and deployed in 2008 to Okinawa Japan as part of the Unit Deployment Program (UDP) as well as Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in 2009 and 2011. He attended Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI) Course 1-11, Aviation Safety Officer Course 2-08, and held the billets of squadron WTI, Assistant Operations Officer, Quality Assurance Officer, Airframes Division Officer, Aviation Safety Officer, and Ground Safety Officer.
Lieutenant Colonel Jones reported to Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron One (MAWTS-1) in Yuma, Arizona as a CH-53E Instructor Pilot from 2012-2015. While at MAWTS-1, Lieutenant Colonel Jones served in the Aviation Development, Test, and Evaluation Department (ADT&E) as the Assault Support Specialist, Rotary Wing ASE SME, Digital Interoperability SME and was the coordinating officer for all Deputy Commandant of Aviation directed Tactical Demonstrations (TACDEMOs) embedded into the WTI course.
Lieutenant Colonel Jones then reported to Maxwell Air Force Base to attended the Air Force Command and Staff College from 2015-2016. He received his Master’s Degree in Military Operational Art and Science, was published, and was the recipient of the 2016 Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA) Research Award.
In June 2016, Lieutenant Colonel Jones reported to HMH-465 and was assigned as the Future Operations and Tactics Officer for VMM-163 (REIN) on the 11th MEU. From July 2016-May 2017, Lieutenant Colonel Jones planned and executed several highly sensitive missions supporting special operations near the Gulf of Aden. Upon his return to HMH-465, he served as Aircraft Maintenance Officer and as the Operations Officer for the squadron’s deployment to UDP 19.1 to Okinawa, Japan.
Lieutenant Colonel Jones next reported to Marine Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron One (VMX-1) in July 2019 as the Director of Science and Technology and after being selected for command was assigned to Marine Aircraft Group 29 in July 2020.
Lieutenant Colonel Jones has over 2,500 mishap-free flight hours and holds all qualifications and flight leadership designations in the CH-53E. His personal decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal, the Air Medal with “C” and Strike/Flight numeral “12,” the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with two gold stars, the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with gold star, and the Selective Marine Corps Reserve Medal. He was also awarded the 2011 USMC Exceptional Pilot Award by the Order of the Daedalians and the 2012 Aviator of the Year by 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.