Brigadier General John Cogbill was commissioned as an Infantry officer from the United States Military Academy in 1994 and has held a variety of positions in both conventional and special operations units.
His first assignment was as a platoon leader and executive officer in the 82nd Airborne Division. He then served two years in the 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment as a platoon leader and civil-military affairs officer. Next, he served three years in Alaska where he served as an airborne rifle company commander and the aide-de-camp to the commanding general.
After earning his MPA from Harvard Kennedy School, Cogbill taught economics in the social sciences department at West Point.
Following the Command and General Staff College, he spent two years as a combined arms battalion executive officer in the 1st Cavalry Division. He then served as the strategic plans and requirements officer for the 75th Ranger Regiment. Cogbill commanded the Reconnaissance and Surveillance Squadron for the U.S. Army Third Corps and then spent a year at Stanford University as a senior service college gellow.
Following that, Cogbill served as the deputy regimental commander for operations for the 75th Ranger Regiment, and then as the commander of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team “Rakkasans” in the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault). Cogbill then served as the chief of staff of the Joint Special Operations Command. After his time at JSOC, he served as the deputy commander for operations of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) and the chief of staff of the XVIII Airborne Corps. He then served as the CENTCOM deputy director of operations, joint fires and effects. He most recently served as the deputy commanding general of XVIII Airborne Corps. His deployments include tours in Iraq, Afghanistan, Haiti, Kosovo, and, most recently, Operation European Assure, Deter, and Reinforce in Europe.