Foreign area officers (FAOs) are Navy's maritime international engagement professionals.  They directly support the National and Maritime Strategy as regional, cultural, and language professionals.

FAOs are organized into five geographic regions that correspond to current combatant commands: CENTCOM, PACOM, SOUTHCOM, EUCOM, AFRICOM.

FAOs are assigned globally and fill a wide range of Pol- Mil oriented positions including: Senior Defense Official/Defense Attaché, Naval Attaché, Security Assistance Officer, Joint and Fleet Staffs, Interagency Staffs, Liasion Officers to foreign militaries.  FAOs may have an opportunity to attend a foreign war college as a student.

The FAO community is a young force with approximately 250 officers and is expected to grow to 310 by FY 2015.  Officers only are accessed into the community via the Active Duty Lateral Transfer and Redesignation Board.   FAO primarily seeks officers having between 8-12 Years of commissioned service from the Unrestricted Line communities.  The most qualified applicants must have demonstrated sustained superior performance as well as strong international and linguistic aptitude.

For futher information regarding the community, please contact the community manager at (901) 874-3694 or visit the community website listed on the right.

For further information regarding the FAO language program please contact altn_n13fao_pep@navy.mil