LtCol McAlarnen commissioned through the NROTC program at Virginia Tech in May 2001. Trained as an AH-1 pilot, he was assigned to HMLA-169 at Camp Pendleton, CA from 2004-2008. During this assignment, he was designated a WTI and executed three deployments in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. After completing TACP school, LtCol McAlarnen was assigned to the 22d MEU as the Assistant Air Officer and completed a deployment to the EUCOM and CENTCOM AORs. He was then designated the Air Officer when the MEU conducted Humanitarian Assistance/Disaster Relief support to Haiti as part of Operation Unified Response in 2010. LtCol McAlarnen was assigned to HMLA-167 from 2010-2013 where he served as Operations Officer and completed CSC DEP. Selected for Foreign PME, LtCol McAlarnen graduated from the Defense Language Institute in 2014 and subsequently attended resident Intermediate Level School in Madrid, Spain. Upon return to the United States, LtCol McAlarnen was assigned as the OIC of MATSS New River and then took on the additional role of Director, Aviation Training Systems, 2d MAW. Moving to Okinawa, Japan, LtCol McAlarnen served as the Air Officer, 3d MEB from 2018-2021 where he worked closely with the joint force, allies, and partners to support competition in the Indo-Pacific. LtCol McAlarnen transitioned from Japan to Portugal, where he served two years as the Air Branch Head for Naval Striking and Support Forces, NATO and one year as both the JTE Branch Head and Deputy Assistant Chief of Staff J-3 Operations. He spearheaded the integration of CSGs and ARG/MEUs into NATO C2 and worked closely with the ACO to develop and implement the first NATO Theater Targeting Process. He is currently assigned as a Military Faculty Advisor at Command and Staff College, Marine Corps University.
LtCol McAlarnen has an MA in International Relations from Webster University.