Thomas L. Brown II

Rear Admiral Thomas L. Brown II (born 1960) is a United States Navy officer and the first Navy officer to command Special Operations Command South, based in Homestead Joint Air Reserve Base, Florida.

Early years
Brown was born in Michigan, but raised in Danbury, CT where his parents Thomas L. Brown and Marjorie G. Brown still reside. The elder Brown is a retired U.S. Navy Commander and Naval Aviator who flew the P-5 Marlin and P-3 Orion aircraft. After retiring from the military, Brown was a pilot for TWA. Rear Admiral Brown was commissioned as a Naval officer from the University of New Mexico's Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) in 1983.

Military career
He completed Underwater Demolition/ SEAL Training and Army Airborne School prior to his assignment to Navy SEAL Team FIVE in 1984. In 1987 he studied Spanish at the Defense Language Institute and then reported to SEAL Team ONE to serve as platoon commander and operations officer.

Brown’s assignments include SEAL Team EIGHT executive officer where he deployed as Naval Special Warfare Task Unit (NSWTU) commander NSWTU-Wasp under commander Amphibious Task Group 185.2; and then as commander NSWTU-America under CTF60. Brown commanded Naval Special Warfare Unit FOUR, Puerto Rico, under U.S. Southern Command from 1999-2001.

Brown’s other assignments include the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict, United States Special Operations Command, and Navy section chief, U.S. Military Advisory Group El Salvador. In 2002 Brown reported to the Directorate of Operations of the Joint Staff, Deputy Directorate Special Operations, and served as the Global War on Terrorism branch chief until September 2005. He was then assigned as assistant chief of staff for Ops and Plans at Naval Special Warfare Command until June 2007, when he took command of Naval Special Warfare Group ONE. Prior to commanding SOCSOUTH, Brown served as the deputy commander of Special Operations Command Europe.



Taking command of Special Operations Command South

On Sept 17, 2010, Brown officially took charge of U.S. special operations forces in Latin America as the commander of Special Operations Command South at Homestead Air Reserve Base, Florida. The command is part of U.S. Southern Command, which is based in Miami and oversees U.S. military operations in Latin America and the Caribbean.

SOCSOUTH oversees Special Operations Forces including civil affairs and information support teams in Latin America and the Caribbean. The command manages some 300 special operations personnel within 15 countries. SOCSOUTH has a number of assigned forces including Charlie Company, 3rd Battalion of the 7th Special Forces Group; Naval Special Warfare Detachment South, and Charlie Company of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment.

One of Brown's first duties as SOCSOUTH commander was to host the Combating Terrorism Fellowship Program (CTFP) Conference in Miami, FL on Sept 20-24,2010.

Education
Brown graduated Tau Beta Pi with a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering, and is a distinguished graduate of the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies of Johns Hopkins University, where he earned a Master of Arts in International Relations with a concentration in Latin American and Strategic Studies. He also holds a Master of Science degree in National Resource Strategy and the DoD Chief Information Officer Certificate from the National Defense University.

Military awards and decorations
Among Brown's military awards and decorations are the following: Badges
 * US Defense Superior Service Medal ribbon.svg Defense Superior Service Medal (second award)
 * Legion of Merit ribbon.svg Legion of Merit
 * Bronze Star ribbon.svg Bronze Star with Valor Device
 * Defense Meritorious Service ribbon.svg Defense Meritorious Service Medal (second award)
 * Meritorious Service ribbon.svg Meritorious Service Medal
 * Joint Service Commendation ribbon.svg Joint Service Commendation Medal
 * Navy and Marine Corps Commendation ribbon.svg Navy Commendation Medal (second award)
 * Us jointservachiev rib.svg Joint Service Achievement Medal
 * Navy and Marine Corps Achievement ribbon.svg Navy Achievement Medal (second award)
 * Combat Action Ribbon.svg Combat Action Ribbon
 * Joint Meritorious Unit Award ribbon.svg Joint Meritorious Unit Award
 * Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation ribbon.svg Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation
 * Navy Pistol Marksmanship Ribbon.svg Navy E Ribbion
 * Southwest Asia Service ribbon.svg Southwest Asia Service Ribbon
 * AFEMRib.svg Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
 * Humanitarian Service ribbon.svg Humanitarian Service Ribbon
 * NATO Meritorious Service Medal bar.svg NATO Meritorious Service Medal
 * Budweiser.png Navy SEAL insignia.