Peter J. Deperro

Colonel Peter J. Deperro

Chief of Staff
U.S. Third Army/Army Forces Central Command (ARCENT)
August 1997 to September 2000

Peter J. Deperro was born in 1948 in New York state. He was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the Air Defense Artillery following his graduation from Canisius College, Buffalo, New York, in 1971. He is a graduate of the Air Defense Artillery Officers Basic Course, the Infantry Officers Advanced Course, the Hawk Officer's Qualification Course, and the Army Command and General Staff College. He earned a masters degree in Education from his Alma Mater, Canisius College in 1983, and graduated from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, National Defense University, in 1993. Colonel Deperro commanded the 3d Battalion, 2d Air Defense Artillery Regiment from July 1989 to June 1991 and in January 1991 led his Battalion Task Force in its combat deployment during operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. On 1 August 1996, Colonel Deperro assumed command of Army Forces Central Command-Saudi Arabia (ARCENT-SA), an array of U.S. Army forces including infantry security units, army communications operations and air defense missile batteries actively defending our Saudi allies.

Colonel Deperro's early assignments include Chaparral Platoon Leader, Battery C, and Battery Executive Officer, Battery A, 2d Battalion (Chaparral/Vulcan), 67th Air Defense Artillery, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kansas. Colonel Deperro's later key assignments include Operations Officer and Adjutant, 2d Battalion, 67th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 32d Army Air Defense Command, U.S. Army Europe; Commander, Battery D, 1st Battalion, 67th Air Defense Artillery Regiment and Operations Officer, 9th Infantry Division Air Defense Artillery, 9th Infantry Division, Fort Lewis, Washington; Battalion Operations Officer, 1st Battalion (Hawk), 44th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, Republic of Korea; Assistant Professor of Military Science, Canisius College, Buffalo, New York; Battalion Executive Officer and S-3, 2d Battalion, 62d Air Defense Artillery, 7th Infantry Division (Light), Fort Ord, California; Branch Chief, Operations and Contingency Plans Division, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, Headquarters, Department of the Army, Pentagon; and Division Chief and Special Staff Officer for the Commander-in-Chief, United States Pacific Command.

Colonel Deperro served as the Chief of Staff for Third U.S. Army/Army Forces Central Command, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, from August 1997 to October 2000. During this period, he operationally directed 3rd Army Headquarters/ARCENT and Staff in their deployments to numerous real world and exercise contingency events in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Qatar (Bright Star '97 & '99, Desert Thunder, Desert Thunder II, & Operation Desert Fox). After his retirement in 2001, Colonel Deperro continued Federal Service with assignment to Forces Command (FORSCOM) Headquarters, Fort McPherson, Georgia, as a Senior Department of the Army Civilian.

Colonel Deperro's military decorations and awards include: The Distinguished Service Medal, The Defense Superior Service Medal, The Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf Cluster, The Bronze Star Medal, The Meritorious Service Medal with two Oak Leaf Cluster, The Army Commendation Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, The Army Achievement Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, Southwest Asia Service Medal, The Kuwait Liberation Medal (Saudi Arabia), and The Army General Staff Identification Badge.

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