Captain Joshua N. Terry is the Cyber Lead for the Cyber & Network Division at the Space Warfighting Analysis Center (SWAC), Peterson Space Force Base, Colorado. He is a seasoned Cyberspace Operations Officer with extensive experience in both Defensive Cyber Operations and large-scale communications management.

Captain Terry commissioned through the Reserve Officer Training Corps in 2017 and entered the Air Force as a Cyberspace Operations Officer. His initial assignment was to Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, where he led Mission Defense Teams, conducted a Functional Mission Analysis-Cyber (FMA-C) on critical installation security systems, and served as a Cyber Aggressor augmentee for the 57th Information Aggressor Squadron. During a deployment in support of OPERATION INHERENT RESOLVE, he served as a Flight Commander and Battlefield Airborne Communications Node (BACN) Liaison, orchestrating tactical air communications during the Afghanistan Retrograde and leading the Air Operations Center Mission Defense Team to thwart a significant malware intrusion. It was during this deployment that he was selected for transfer to the United States Space Force.

Following his deployment, Captain Terry commanded the Communications Flight at Thule Air Base, Greenland. There, he led 6 military members and 105 contractors, managed a $58M Base Maintenance Contract, and enabled critical operations for NASA's Event Horizon Telescope and the Air Force Research Laboratory's GLOBAL LIGHTNING program. Subsequently, as an Operations Flight Commander and later Director of Staff for the 64th Cyberspace Squadron, he led Defensive Cyber Operations (DCO) protecting the nation's $37.4B Space-Based Infrared System (SBIRS) and was the top graduate and later lead instructor for the Cyber Combat Course (C3), qualifying 47 members and saving an estimated $270K in TDY costs.

Captain Terry holds a Master of Science in Cybersecurity and Information Assurance. His military awards and decorations include the Air and Space Commendation Medal with one oak leaf cluster and the Air Force Achievement Medal. He has been recognized as the Space Operations Command Company Grade Officer of the Year (2021) and received the USSF-level Chief Information Officer (CIO) Award (2024).


EDUCATION

  • 2017 Bachelor of Arts, Political Science and International Relations, California State University, Sacramento, Calif. 2017 Undergraduate Cyber Training, Keesler Air Force Base, Miss. 
  • 2022 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Ala.  
  • 2024 Master of Science, Cybersecurity and Information Assurance, Western Governors University, Salt Lake City, Utah


CAREER CHRONOLOGY

  • October 2017 – July 2018, Student, 333d Training Squadron, Keesler AFB, Miss.
  • July 2018 – October 2018, Crew Commander, 53d Computer Systems Squadron, Nellis AFB, Nev.
  • October 2018 – March 2019, Crew Commander, 53d Computer Systems Squadron, Nellis AFB, Nev.
  • March 2019 – July 2021, Officer in Charge, Mission Defense Cell, 99th Communications Squadron, Nellis AFB, Nev.
  • October 2020 – April 2021, Special Missions Flight Commander, 609th Air Communications Squadron, Al Udeid AB, Qatar (Deployed)
  • July 2021 – July 2022, Communications Flight Commander, 821st Support Squadron, Thule AB, Greenland
  • July 2022 – October 2022, Operations Flight Commander, 62d Cyberspace Squadron, Buckley SFB, Colo.
  • October 2022 – September 2024, Operations Flight Commander, 64th Cyberspace Squadron, Buckley SFB, Colo.
  • September 2024 – July 2025, Director of Staff, 64th Cyberspace Squadron, Buckley SFB, Colo.
  • July 2025 – Present, Cyber Lead, Cyber & Network Division, Space Warfighting Analysis Center, Peterson SFB, Colo.


MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS

  • Air and Space Commendation Medal with one oak leaf cluster  
  • Air Force Achievement Medal with one oak leaf cluster


OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS

  • 2021 Space Operations Command Company Grade Officer of the Year
  • 2022 Selected, Squadron Officer School Project Nova Advanced Research Program  
  • 2022 Space Base Delta 1 Lance P. Sijan Leadership Award  
  • 2023 Top Graduate, Cyber Combat Course  
  • 2024 USSF-level Chief Information Officer Award  
  • 2025 Mission Delta 4 Innovator of the Quarter, 1st Quarter


EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION

  • Second Lieutenant June 3, 2017  
  • First Lieutenant June 3, 2019  
  • Captain August 2, 2021


(Current as of 9/2025)