Lieutenant Colonel (LCol) TONY O'KEEFFE, MMM, CD

LCol Tony O'Keeffe grew up in Chateauguay Quebec. He joined the Canadian Forces in 1981 as a Radar Technician, and was posted to CFS Beaverlodge, Alberta.  In 1984 he was selected for training as Maritime Operational Aircrew and received his flight wings as an Airborne Electronic Sensor Operator.  LCol O'Keeffe was posted to 405 Squadron in Greenwood NS as aircrew on CP 140 Aurora Long Range Patrol aircraft.  He was selected for commissioning in 1987 as an Air Weapons Control Officer.

Upon qualification in 1989, LCol O'Keeffe served as the Squadron Training Officer at 42 Radar Squadron in Cold Lake, Alberta.  In 1992 he was posted to 410 Tactical Fighter Training Squadron as the Deputy Weapons and Tactics Officer at the CF 18 Fighter Weapons Instructor School.  He was subsequently posted to the Royal Military College (RMC) in 1995 as Squadron Commander.

Upon promotion to Major in 1998, LCol O'Keeffe was posted to the 963rd AWACS Squadron at Tinker Air Force Base Oklahoma where he flew surveillance and airspace control missions as Mission Crew Commander with the United States Air Force.  In 2001, LCol O'Keeffe was posted to Ottawa in National Defence Headquarters working in Air Force Careers.  Following this, in 2003, LCol O'Keeffe was posted to the Canadian Defence Academy in Kingston On, employed as the Senior Staff Officer for CF Officer Professional Development.

Upon promotion to present rank in 2007, he was posted back to RMC where he presently serves in command as the Director of Cadets.  He has completed 2 operational flying tours as a Mission Crew Commander on E3 AWACS during Operation Southern Watch in Saudi Arabia in support of the United Nations sanctioned "no fly zone" over Iraq; and, 1 tour in Bosnia Herzegovina with NATO forces in Sarajevo.

He holds a BMASc from RMC, and a Masters Degree from the University of Oklahoma.  He is a graduate of the CF 18 Fighter Weapons Instructors Course, and a graduate of the United States Air Command and Staff College.  He is married with 2 grown children.