Rear Admiral Ronald J. Rábago
Assistant Commandant for Acquisition
United States Coast Guard
Download
Rear Admiral Ronald J. Rábago assumed duties as the Assistant Commandant for Acquisition and Chief Acquisition Officer (CAO) on June 15, 2009, following a two year assignment as the Coast Guard Program Executive Officer. As CAO, he directs efforts across all Coast Guard acquisition programs and related procurement management, contracting and research and development activities to execute the Service’s current $27 billion acquisition investment portfolio.
In his previous assignment as the Coast Guard’s Program Executive Officer (PEO), he oversaw the execution of all Coast Guard acquisition programs and projects, including Deepwater, which provides for the sustainment, modernization, and recapitalization of surface, air, command and control, and logistics assets for the Coast Guard's multiple maritime missions.
RADM Rábago’s other assignments include: Director of Personnel Management at Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, D.C.; Deputy Commander of the Maintenance and Logistics Command Atlantic in Norfolk, Virginia; Industrial Manager and then the Commanding Officer of the Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore, Maryland; Chief of the Fifth District Law Enforcement Branch; Commanding Officer of the Coast Guard Cutter (CGC) TAMPA, in Portsmouth, VA; Executive Officer of the CGC BOUTWELL, in Alameda, California; Type Desk Manager in the Vessel Repair Division of the Maintenance and Logistics Command Atlantic on Governors Island, New York; Executive Officer of the Naval Engineering Support Unit (NESU) at Portsmouth, VA; Port Engineer at the Ship Repair Detachment in Portsmouth, Virginia; Engineer Officer on board the CGC TAMPA; and engineering and deck Marine Inspector at the Marine Safety Office Port Arthur, Texas. His first assignment was aboard the Honolulu-based CGC MELLON as a Student Engineer.
Rear Admiral Rábago is a 1978 graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, earning a Bachelor of Science Degree in Ocean Engineering. In 1983, he attended the University of Michigan and earned Masters of Science Degrees in Naval Architecture & Marine Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. In 1995, he was named the Coast Guard’s “Engineer of the Year” and in 1996, he attended the Naval War College, where he earned a Masters Degree in National Security and Strategic Studies. Rear Admiral Rábago is a licensed Professional Engineer and has earned a Program Manager Level III Certification.