From 1999 to 2005 Colón-López was a member of the 24th Special Tactics Squadron as a Special Tactics Element Leader.[8] While a member of the 24th STS, from July 2002 to September 2004, Colón-López was deployed four times to Afghanistan as part of a joint task force to several classified locations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.[4] While deployed he participated in a series of joint operations, including direct assaults and combat search and rescue missions. During this time he also protected future Afghanistan president, Hamid Karzai, and received his first Bronze Star Medal with valor for his actions under fire while supporting Karzai's security detail.[4][9] His second Bronze Star Medal was for his actions after his helicopter was shot down during a mission in Afghanistan. After the helicopter crash landed, two Navy SEALs and Colón-López assaulted fortified enemy positions, killing five combatants and ensuring the safety of the remaining crew.[4] He was selected to create and implement the unit's compartmented Personnel Recovery Advance Force Operations team, which serviced the entire Joint Special Operations arena.[7]
On March 11, 2004, Colón-López, together with his Advance Force Operations Team and elements of the Afghan National Strike Unit, participated in an operation which required the capture of a high level target and a follow-on site exploitation with the intention of preventing the proliferation of chemical weapons. His helicopter drew hostile enemy fire yet Colón-López continued on his mission, which resulted in two enemy kills, the capture of 10 enemy troops and the destruction of multiple rocket propelled grenades and small caliber weapons.[10] In January 2005, after Colón-López returned to the United States, he was named Superintendent of Training and later as interim Commandant of the Pararescue and Combat Rescue Officer School.[7][11][12]
HWY1116, Carretera SEAC Ramon Colon-Lopez in Guanica, Puerto Rico.
Later career
Air Force Combat Action Medal
On June 13, 2007, Colón-López became the first Hispanic, and one of the first six airmen, to be awarded the newly created Air Force Combat Action Medal. It was bestowed upon him by Air Force Chief of Staff General T. Michael Moseley at the Air Force Memorial, in Washington, D.C.[13] The medal was created to recognize Air Force members who are engaged in air or ground combat "outside the wire" in combat zones. Airmen who are under direct and hostile fire, or who personally engaged hostile forces with direct and lethal fire are eligible to receive the award.[14] The other five airmen to receive the award were Major Steve Raspet; Master Sergeant Byron P. Allen; Master Sergeant Charlie Peterson; Staff Sergeant Daniel Paxton; and Captain Allison K. Black.[13]
The "Warrior Airmen" exhibit at the U.S. Air Force Museum with a mannequin of Colón-López on the right
After leaving the PJ/CRO Schoolhouse Colón-López returned to Pope Field and the 24th Special Tactics Squadron as the unit's Senior Enlisted Advisor from April 2009 to April 2011.[8] As of 2009 a mannequin of Colón-López is featured at the United States Air Force Museum located in Dayton, Ohio, in the museum's "Warrior Airmen" exhibit.[15][16]
After serving as the SEA for the 24th STS for two years, Colón-López then served as the inaugural Group Superintendent of the 724th Special Tactics Group at Pope Field, which was activated on 30 April 2011. However, he only held the position for six months before becoming the Command Chief Master Sergeant of the 1st Special Operations Wing at Hurlburt Field on November 30, 2011.[17] In January 2013 Colón-López was reassigned to the 18th Wing at Kadena AB, Japan where he served as the wing's Command Chief. In addition to his traditional duties as a wing's Command Chief he also served as Kadena Air Base's senior enlisted liaison between the 18th Wing and enlisted personnel from other Department of Defense branches on Okinawa.[8]
In 2013 the Air Force Professional Development Guide (PDG) featured an excerpt regarding Colón-López added in the "Enlisted Heritage" chapter, in which it refers to his actions in Afghanistan that led to him receiving the Air Force Combat Action Medal.[18] The PDG is studied by airmen for the Promotion Fitness Examination portion of the Weighted Airman Promotion System which overall determines promotions to the ranks of Staff Sergeant (E-5) through Technical Sergeant (E-6) Air Force-wide.[19]
SEAC Colon-Lopez is awarded the DDSM by CJCS General CQ Brown
In 2023, he was honored in his hometown of Guánica, Puerto Rico with a road named after him as "Carretera SEAC Ramon Colon Lopez" on HWY 1116,[21] and on October 24, 2023, he was the inaugural recipient of the Euripides Rubio Medal, presented by the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico for an accomplished military career with significant valorous combat actions and honor.[22]
As the SEAC, Colon-Lopez became the first enlisted member of the United States Armed Forces to be awarded the Defense Distinguished Service Medal for outstanding contributions to national security in a position of great responsibility. The Defense Distinguished Service Medal is the United States Department of Defense's highest non-combat related military award and it is the highest joint service decoration.
June 2016 – September 2016, Senior Enlisted Advisor, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, Manpower and Reserve Affairs, Headquarters United States Air Force, Pentagon, Washington, D.C.[23]
^Randolph, Monique (2007-06-12). "Air Force Awards First Combat Action Medals". DoD News via American Forces Press Service (Special Correspondence). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Defense. Archived from the original on 2015-09-30. Retrieved 2019-10-03. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley awarded six airmen the Air Force Combat Action Medal during a ceremony today at the Air Force Memorial. These airmen were the first in the Air Force to receive the new medal.
^Sarraille, Mike (November 30, 2023). "The Warrior's Path: Ramon 'CZ' Colón-López's Journey from Poverty to Highest Ranks in the U.S. Military". Men's Journal.
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