Morehead State alumnus DeMoss promoted to Rear Admiral in U.S. Navy

Trent DeMoss (90) was promoted to the rank of rear admiral lower half earlier this year, and subsequently assumed command of Commander, Fleet Readiness Centers (COMFRC), under Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), in Patuxent River, Maryland.   

Commander, Fleet Readiness Centers (COMFRC) is the headquarters for eight Fleet Readiness Centers (FRCs) and one Reserve component across the globe. COMFRC employs a workforce of more than 20,000 shore-based aviation maintenance professionals, comprised of highly skilled military, civilian and contractor aeronautical engineers, logisticians, managers, technicians and artisans who produce aircraft ready for tasking by providing maintenance, repair and overhaul of Navy and Marine Corps aviation assets and support equipment. 

“Just another day of doing the work and being around great people,” DeMoss said. “My promotion is a reflection of all of them, not of me. It’s been a marathon full of challenges, sacrifices and tough days, but the days are full of more rewarding moments than are countable. Wouldn’t change a minute.”   

A native of Morehead, DeMoss had a grandfather, as well as several uncles and cousins, who served in the Navy and Army. Having grown up around Morehead State University thanks to his mother Carla Salyer and father Dr. Gerald DeMoss (63) working on campus, he decided to pursue his MSU education. His brother and MSU professor of biology, Dr. Darrin DeMoss (89), was also an MSU student.   

“Many of my role models and friends were relationships with people I knew through my parents and interacted with on a daily basis,” he said. “Simply, it was and still is home.”   

DeMoss graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Physics and Mathematics in 1990 but found the idea of serving in the military appealing for both travel and adventure. He went on to attend Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island, where he graduated in 1991 and was commissioned an ensign in the U.S. Navy, earning the designation of aerospace engineering duty officer (maintenance) in 1992. That same year, DeMoss reported to his first assignment with Helicopter Anti-submarine Squadron 5 (HS-5) in Jacksonville, Florida. There, he served as the maintenance and material control officer and completed the USS George Washington’s (CVN-73) maiden deployment.   

DeMoss reported to the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, in 1994 and went on to earn a Master of Science in Aeronautical Engineering in 1997. DeMoss served in various roles aboard the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75), USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69), USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) and at Lockheed Martin from 1997 to 2007. He was also deployed with multi-national NATO forces to Kosovo and Macedonia, supporting Task Force Falcon and Operation Joint Guardian. DeMoss was later selected “Best in Service – Navy” for his performance in 2001. Later, he completed a successful eight-month deployment supporting operations in South Africa, Operation Enduring Freedom and maritime security operations in the Gulf of Oman.   

DeMoss reported to NAVAIR, Naval Undergraduate Training Systems, as the assistant program manager, logistics in 2009 until his transfer in 2012. While assigned to NAVAIR, he also served as deputy program manager for F/A-18 and EA-18G Air Vehicle Systems in the F/A-18 and EA-18G Program Office. 

He later reported to COMFRC as the military production director in 2014 before reporting to Fleet Readiness Center Southeast as the executive officer in 2015. Once there, he took over as commanding officer in 2017 before reporting to COMFRC, as vice commander two years later. After earning his current ranking of rear admiral, he took command of COMFRC in August 2020, a position he holds to this day.   

His decorations include two Navy Achievement Medals, three Navy Commendation Medals, three Meritorious Service Medals, a Joint Service Commendation Medal, a Defense Meritorious Service Medal, two Legions of Merit, and others.   

“I never thought I was going to make a career of it; I looked at it as a short-term set of goals that I would do and then move on to other things,” Demoss said. “Thirty years later, it has flown by. Have loved every minute. I’ve met people and had experiences I will never forget and will value the rest of my life.”   

Additional information for veterans, national guardsmen and reservists, and military families is available at www.moreheadstate.edu/veterans or by contacting Session at 606-783-9416 or ssession@moreheadstate.edu.