With more than 38 years of experience as an engineer working for U.S. Navy across multiple platforms and commands, Mr. Christopher (Chris) G. Ledlow serves as Executive Director of Forward Deployed Regional Maintenance Center (FDRMC), headquartered in Naples, Italy with detachments in Rota, Spain and Manama, Bahrain. A native of Panama City Beach, Fla., he enlisted in the U.S. Navy as a Machinist Mate in 1984, rising to the rank of Senior Chief before commissioning as an Engineering Limited Duty Officer (LDO).
While enlisted, he served aboard USS Puget Sound (AD 38), USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) and USS Austin (LPD 4). As an LDO, he served aboard USS Peterson (DD 969) as Main Propulsion Assistant; USS Nitze (DDG 94) as Main Propulsion Assistant and Combat Systems Officer; and USS Kauffman (FFG 59) as Chief Engineer.
After retiring from active duty in 2010, Mr. Ledlow joined McKean Defense as a program manager for the Surface Maintenance Engineering Planning Program (SURFMEPP) in Portsmouth, Va. In 2011, he entered Federal service as the SURFMEPP Platform Division Supervisor and later served as the Engineering Department Head. In 2019, he joined Commander, Naval Surface Forces Pacific as the Deputy Assistant Chief of Staff for Maintenance and Engineering overseeing the maintenance of 92 ships and a $2 billion annual budget.
Most recently in October 2022, Mr. Ledlow assumed the role and responsibilities of Executive Director at FDRMC. FDRMC provides emergent, intermediate and depot-level maintenance and modernization for transient and Forward Deployed Naval Forces in U.S. Fifth and Sixth Fleets through fleet technical assistance, voyage repair, contract management oversight, assessments, and diving and salvage.
Mr. Ledlow received his Bachelor of Science in Engineering Studies from Phoenix University. In 2009, he graduated from Troy University with a Master of Science in Management (MSM) in Organizational Leadership and Development with a second concentration in Management Information Systems.
Mr. Ledlow has received two Meritorious Civilian Service Medals and various other awards during his civil service career. He has a son who currently serves as a structural engineer in Naval Sea System Command’s Ford-class Carrier Program.