Chief Master Sergeant Charles J. Apodaca is the Senior Enlisted Leader of Space Base Delta 1, Peterson Space Force Base, Colorado. He leads the enlisted force and is the principal advisor to the Space Base Delta Commander on all matters impacting the combat readiness, welfare, morale, proper utilization, and progress of assigned personnel. Space Base Delta 1 encompasses a 3,600- member team providing Base Operating Support to more than 18,400 military, Department of Defense civilians and contractor personnel serving at 22 operating locations worldwide executing critical missile warning, space domain awareness, space control, position, navigation, and timing, satellite communications, electronic warfare, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, and cyberspace missions.
Chief Apodaca entered the Air Force in May of 1998. He graduated from the Morse Operator and Signals Intelligence apprentice courses at Ft. Huachuca, Arizona and Corry Field, Pensacola, Florida and performed duties
as an intelligence analyst for the National Security Agency. Additionally, he returned to Ft. Huachuca as a technical instructor before cross-training into the communications field in 2004. He is well-versed on
Network Control Center operations as well as enterprise operations and solutions. As a Cyber Transport professional, he served in many capacities such as a Network Training Instructor, a Small Computers technician and a Technical Control Facility Section Chief as well as an Infrastructure Branch Chief with oversight of secure and unsecure networks, phone services, Voice over Internet Protocol services, wireless morale networks and long-haul communications. He also served as a Systems Control Officer for the Defense Information Systems Agency, actively monitoring communications for the entire Middle East Area of Responsibility while serving as a liaison between DISA Continental U.S., Central Command, Africa Command and Europe.
Prior to assuming his current position, he served as the Senior Enlisted Leader of Space Delta 12 and Space Training and Readiness Delta (Provisional), preparing U.S. Space Force to prevail in a contested, degraded, and operationally limited environment through the test and evaluation of Space capabilities. He also he guided 900 members and 13 subordinate units as they executed the United States Space Force’s education, training, range, doctrine development, aggressor, and test and evaluation missions and ensured training for over 50,000 space warfighters. Additionally, Chief Apodaca has deployed in support of Operations SOUTHERN WATCH, IRAQI FREEDOM, ENDURING FREEDOM, INHERENT RESOLVE, ORYX SHIELD, FREEDOM SENTINEL, ENDURING SENTINEL and SPARTAN SHIELD.
EDUCATION
2002 Airman Leadership School, Davis-Monthan Air Force Base (AFB), Arizona
2007 Associate Degree, Electronic Systems Technology, Community College of the Air Force, Maxwell AFB, Alabama
2010 Noncommissioned Officer Academy, Peterson AFB, Colorado
2015 United States Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer’s Academy, Petaluma Training Center, California
2017 Senior Enlisted Joint Professional Military Education II, Alexandria, Va.
2022 Baccalaureate Degree, Information Technology, Colorado State University
ASSIGNMENTS
1. July 1998–January 1999, Student, Technical Training School, Ft. Huachuca, Ariz.
2. January 1999–June 1999, Student, Technical Training School, Corry Field, Pensacola, Fla.
3. June 1999–January 2000, Intelligence Analyst, 29th and 32nd Intelligence Squadrons, Ft. Meade, Md.
4. January 2000–April 2002, Staff Officer, National Security Agency, Ft. Meade, Md.
5. April 2002–March 2004, Technical School Instructor, 314th Training Squadron, Ft. Huachuca, Ariz.
6. March 2004–October 2004, Student, Technical Training School, Keesler AFB, Miss.
7. October 2004–January 2005, Network Training Instructor, 49th CS, Holloman AFB, N.M.
8. January 2005–October 2008, NCOIC, Network Management, 49th CS, Holloman AFB, N.M.
9. October 2008–October 2009, Systems Control Officer, Defense Info Systems Agency, Naval Air Station, Bahrain
10. October 2009–August 2012, Section Chief, Technical Control Facility, 21st CS, Peterson AFB, Colo.
11. August 2012–July 2014, Branch Chief, Infrastructure, 21st CS, Peterson AFB, Colo.
12. July 2014–July 2015, Commander’s Action Group, Air Force Space Command, Peterson AFB, Colo.
13. July 2015–July 2017, Assistant First Sergeant, Air Force Space Command/NASA, Peterson AFB, Colo.
14. July 2017–November 2019, Superintendent, Air Force Operational Test & Eval Center, Det. 4, Peterson AFB, Colo.
15. Dec 2019–February 2021, Senior Enlisted Leader, 21st CS, Peterson AFB, Colo.
16. February 2021–August 2021, Senior Enlisted Leader, Space Training & Readiness Delta (P), Peterson AFB, Colo.
17. August 2021–July 2023, Senior Enlisted Leader, Delta 12, Schriever SFB, Colo.
18. July 2023–Present, Senior Enlisted Leader, Space Base Delta 1, Peterson SFB, Colo.
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Legion of Merit
Meritorious Service Medal with five oak leaf clusters
Joint Service Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
Joint Service Achievement Medal with oak leaf cluster
OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS
1998 Samuel F.B. Morse Award, Technical School, Ft. Huachuca, Ariz.
1999 Honor Graduate, Technical School, Corry Field, Pensacola, Fla.
2000 Executive Citation, State of Maryland, Baltimore, Md.
2004 Citizenship Award, Technical School, Keesler Air Force Base, Miss.
2004 Air Education and Training Command, Commander Top Graduate, Technical School, Keesler AFB, Miss.
2011 Senior Noncommissioned Officer of the Year, 21st Communications Squadron, Peterson AFB, Colo.
2013 Senior Noncommissioned Officer of the Year, 21st Space Wing, Peterson AFB, Colo.
2014 Lance P. Sijan Award, Air Force Space Command, Peterson AFB, Colo.
2015 Air Force Sergeant’s Assoc. Community Service Team Award (Chapter President), Peterson AFB, Colo.
2017 Lance P. Sijan Award, Air Force Space Command, Peterson AFB, Colo.
2017 AFA Extra Large Chapter Aerospace Education Excellence Award (Chapter President), Peterson AFB, Colo.
2017 Base Junior Enlisted Association Mentor of the Year, Peterson AFB, Colo.
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Airman Basic, May 20, 1998
Airman First Class, July 4, 1998
Senior Airman, Nov. 4, 2000
Staff Sergeant, July 1, 2002
Technical Sergeant, May 1, 2007
Master Sergeant, June 1, 2011
Senior Master Sergeant, July 1, 2016
Chief Master Sergeant, Aug. 1, 2019
(Current as of September 2023)