Captain John ""Gucci"" Malfitano, a native of Pearl River, New York, was commissioned through the Aviation Officer Candidate School program in 1986 and was designated a Naval Aviator in 1988. He served multiple times at sea, flying the Navy's E-2C Hawkeye and completing eight deployments on Atlantic Fleet aircraft carriers, participating in combat operations during Desert Storm and Iraqi Freedom. Ashore, he commanded Naval Station Great Lakes - the Quarterdeck of the Navy. He retired in 2016 and resides in Virginia Beach, Virginia with his family.