Lt. Col. James Ravella is a career fighter pilot currently serving as a National Defense Fellow at The Washington Institute. Before joining the Institute, Colonel Ravella was the operations officer of 90 Fighter Squadron, Elmendorf Air Force Base (AFB), Alaska.
The colonel was born in Abilene, Texas, and graduated from Texas A&M University in 1983. He earned his pilot wings at Laughlin AFB, Texas, in 1987, and is a command pilot with over 3,000 hours in the T-37, T-38, and F-15E aircraft. He holds a master's degree in aeronautical science and graduated at the top of both his F-15E Training and Squadron Officers School classes.
Colonel Ravella served in the Office of Defense Cooperation, Turkey, as chief of security assistance. In this capacity, he helped launch the premier coalition training exercise between Turkey, Israel, and the U.S. Air Force. Colonel Ravella also has extensive experience in PACAF and the Korean AOR.
Colonel Ravella and his wife Andrea have two sons, Nicholas (18) and Anthony (12).
