LtCol Stuart hails from Marshall, VA and graduated from Virginia Tech in 2005 with a B.S in Industrial Systems Engineering. He was commissioned in 2008 upon OCS graduation after three years of employment as an Project Engineer for United States Gypsum (USG) in Los Angeles, CA. He attended flight training and earned his Wings of Gold in May, 2011 with follow-on designation as an AV-8B Harrier pilot.
LtCol Stuart joined the Blacksheep of VMA-214 at MCAS Yuma, AZ in June, 2012 and served as the Administrative and Logistics Officer as well as the Aviation Life Support Systems (ALSS) Division Officer. He held additional collateral duties with the Green Knights of VMFA-121 as they transitioned the first operational squadron in the Department of Defense to the F-35. In August, 2013 LtCol Stuart was attached to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 166 and deployed with 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) to the CENTCOM area of responsibility.
Upon return from the 13th MEU, LtCol Stuart applied for and was accepted into the F-35 program and reported to VMFA-121 in December 2014. He completed his transition training at VMFAT-501 at MCAS Beaufort, SC in June 2015 and returned to the Green Knights. He served as Schedules Officer and Current/Future Operations Officer as the squadron achieved Full Operational Capability (FOC) and prepared to move to MCAS Iwakuni, Japan in December, 2016. During this time he earned his F-35 Instructor Pilot certification. Upon arrival in Iwakuni, LtCol Stuart served as the Powerline Officer, Airframes Officer, and assumed the duties of Pilot Training Officer following his graduation from MAWTS-1 Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI) Course 1-18. While stationed in Japan, LtCol Stuart deployed on five 31st MEU patrols in the East China Sea, South China Sea, Philippine Sea, and Australia and earned his Training Landing Signals Officer (TLSO) qualification.
After five years in the Green Knights, LtCol Stuart reported to the VMFAT-501 Warlords in January, 2020 where he served as the Pilot Training Officer, Chief Instructor, and Operations Officer.
In July of 2023 LtCol Stuart reported to 2d Marine Aircraft Wing Operations (G-3) at MCAS Cherry Point, NC and served as the Wing Training Officer. He was transferred back to MCAS Beaufort, SC in September, 2024 as the Prospective Commanding Officer (PCO) for the VMFA-224 Fightin’ Bengals. During this time he provided augment Instructor Pilot support to MAWTS-1 WTI Course 1-25 in MCAS Yuma, AZ and served as the MAG-31 Personnel Support Detachment (PSD) Commanding Officer.
LtCol Stuart’s personal decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with one gold star, and the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with one gold star.