Major Joseph A. Fry graduated from The George Washington University in 2005, earning his commission as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps. After completion of The Basic School and Flight Training, he was designated a Naval Aviator and reported to HMLAT-303, Camp Pendleton, CA for training in the AH-1W Cobra.
Major Fry completed AH-1W training in May 2008 and reported to HMLA-267 “Stingers” where he served in the operations department and deployed with the 31st MEU in July 2008. While deployed with HMM-262 (REIN) “Flying Tigers”, he served as a flight schedule writer in the operations department on board the USS Essex (LHD-2). Following his return in 2009, he was promoted to Captain and became the Flight Officer in the operations department at HMLA-267.
In January 2010, he joined HMM-165 (REIN) “White Knights” for deployment with the 15th MEU on board the USS Peleliu (LHA-5). He served as the Air Planner for the MEU ACE and was the action officer for ACE operations in support of the Jordanian Operational Deployment Program (JODP) at King Faisal Air Base in Jordan.
Returning from deployment in December 2010, Major Fry went on to graduate from the MAWTS-1 Weapons and Tactics Instructor Course in Yuma, AZ. Immediately following WTI, Major Fry deployed again with HMLA-267 to Camp Bastion, Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Throughout the deployment, Major Fry served in the operations department as the Pilot Training Officer, Named Operations Officer, and Liaison Officer to the British Helicopter Forces with Task Force Helmand.
In December 2011, Major Fry returned from Afghanistan and began training in the AH-1Z upgrade. He completed his conversion training and served as the Pilot Training Officer and Tactics Officer for HMLA-267. In May 2013, he was selected to deploy with VMM-166 (REIN) “Sea Elk” as the detachment WTI in support of the 13th MEU. He served as the detachment Future Operations Officer and Quality Assurance Officer on board the USS New Orleans (LPD-18).
Following his fourth deployment, Major Fry was recruited by the AH-1 division at MAWTS-1 as an instructor pilot for the weapons school. He served as a Subject Matter Expert and WTI instructor from July 2014 through July 2017. During that time he was promoted to Major and spent two years in the Aviation Development Tactics & Evaluation (ADT&E) department as the Rotary Wing Offensive Air Support Specialist.
In 2017, Major Fry was selected to attend the Command & Staff College at Marine Corps University in Quantico, VA where he was a distinguished graduate earning a Masters of Military Studies with a focus on the Future of Vertical Lift.
In July 2018, Major Fry joined HMLA-169 “Vipers” where he served as the Operations Officer during the squadron’s deployment to Okinawa in support of UDP 19.2. Upon return, he assumed his current position as the Executive Officer.
Major Fry holds every tactical qualification and designation in the AH-1Z. He has accumulated over 2,800 flight hours in both fixed and rotary wing aircraft. His decorations include Air Medal with Strike / Flight Numeral 5, Navy & Marine Corps Commendation Medal with Gold Star, Navy & Marine Corps Achievement Medal with three gold stars, and various unit and campaign awards.