11/11/2020
In honour of Veterans Day we would like to give our appreciation and gratitude to our SAI Col (R) Andrew R. Flynn for serving in the military and helping our community and battalion grow throughout the years.
At an early age, Colonel Andrew R. Flynn was inspired to join the army by his uncle, who was a special forces officer in Vietnam. “I began by starting in the boy scouts, I got interested in serving then.” He joined the army as a special force medic in 1977.
Colonel Flynn rose up the ranks and had many assignments such as commanding soldiers, training new cadets, and being deployed in military conflicts.
From his humble origins as a medic, Colonel Flynn eventually became commissioned in 1984 by the California Military Academy. He was culminated through his deployment in the LA Riots of 1992.
He had an impressive amount of staff assignments: 3-160th Infantry Logistics Officer, Assistant 1st Brigade Operations Officer, Aide-de-Camp to the 40th Infantry Division Commanding General, Assistant Professor of Military Science, University of Southern California ROTC, Southern California Recruiting Officer in charge, and Executive Officer 1-160th Infantry.
He has commanded the 3-160th Infantry for three years, which included his first deployment in Sinai, Egypt.
Other countries Colonel Flynn has served in were Afghanistan as an advisor and Iraq. Colonel Flynn also has carried out many operations within the United States including a Civil Support Team in San Diego, and Warfighter training exercises in Fort Riley, Kansas.
After 36 years of service, Colonel Flynn retired as the Senior Mentor in the Embedded Training Team, in the Joint Headquarters at Sacramento in 2013. A decorated and well educated veteran, Colonel Flynn now is in charge of the Van Nuys High Schools Junior Reserves Officer Training Corps (JROTC).
He explains that he technically now has “two” jobs with two bosses. “My primary boss is Ms. Gardea, from the LAUSD district but my second boss from the JROTC district is Lieutenant Colonel McDonnell.”
