Capt. Shane Tanner, commanding officer at Naval Air Station Fallon, is this year’s speaker at the city of Fallon’s 9/11 ceremony.
Photo by Steve Ranson.
Navy Capt. Shane Tanner, commanding officer of Naval Air Station Fallon, is this year’s guest speaker for the city of Fallon’s 9/11 ceremony.
Tanner was born in Auburn, New York. He received his commission from Texas A&M University in 1998. He completed primary and intermediate flight training in Pensacola, Florida, and advanced flight training in Norfolk, Virginia, earning his wings on Oct. 20 2000.
His operational tours span the East Coast, West Coast, FDNF-Japan, and FDNF-Europe. He has flown with VAW-121 “Bluetails,” VAW-115 “Liberty Bells,” VAW-117 “Wallbangers,” VAW-120 “Greyhawks,” and commanded the VAW-125 “Tigertails,” where he led the Fleet’s first E-2D squadron in the homeport shift from Norfolk, Virginia, to Iwakuni, Japan.
His squadrons provided Airborne Command and Control for Carrier Air Wing One, Five, Seven, and Eleven, while embarked onboard the USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63), USS John F Kennedy (CV 67), USS Nimitz (CVN 68), USS George Washington (CVN 73), and USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) in support of Operations Noble Eagle, Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, numerous WESTPAC (Western Pacific) patrols, and partner-building operations across Second, Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Fleet areas of responsibilities.
Tanner’s shore assignments include the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center (NSAWC), Carrier Airborne Early Warning Weapons School (CAEWWS) as a Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI); Executive Assistant to the Director Joint Staff J8 Joint Integrated Air and Missile Defense Organization (JIAMDO); Military Program Lead for BLACK DART; Executive Officer of the Hawkeye-Greyhound Fleet Replacement Squadron; Executive Assistant to Commander US Sixth Fleet, Striking and Support Forces NATO; Deputy Commander of Task Force 63, Military Sealift Command Europe and Africa; and his most recent assignment as the commanding officer of Naval Air Station Fallon.
Tanner graduated from the U.S. Naval War College as a member of the “Halsey Group” with a Masters of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies in 2009. He graduated from the Joint Forces Staff College in 2014 earning Full Joint Qualification. He is also a graduate of the U.S. Navy Strike Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN) and Carrier Airborne Early Warning Weapons School (CAEWWS).
His personal awards include the Legion of Merit, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal (2), Strike Flight Medal (7), Joint Service Commendation Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal (3), Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal (4), and various other personal unit, and campaign awards.
Tanner has accumulated over 3,000 hours in the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye, E-2C, F/A-18D, F-16B, S-3B, E-3B, and others. He logged over 600 carrier arrested landings and 174 combat missions in Afghanistan and Iraq.