Major Victor Bockman was born in Jackson, Mississippi and attended the Virginia Military Institute. Upon completion of his undergraduate studies, Major Bockman attended graduate school at Tulane University. While in graduate school he enlisted in the Marine Corps in May 2007 and attended recruit training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, California where he graduated as the company honor man. Following graduation, he reported to Infantry Training Battalion, Camp Geiger, North Carolina. Following graduation as the Battalion Commander’s Outstanding Leadership recipient, he was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 23rd Marines where he served as a rifleman and fire team leader.
Following graduation from Tulane University, Major Bockman was selected as an Officer Candidate and attended Officer School in Quantico, Virginia. He graduated with honors and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant on December 11, 2009. Following Officer Candidate School, Major Bockman attended The Basic School and graduated in July 2010.
Following graduation, Major Bockman reported to Naval Air Training Command, Pensacola, Florida. While awaiting flight training, he was assigned Temporary Additional Duty at Marine Helicopter Squadron One (HMX-1) in Quantico, Virginia. In March 2011, he reported back to flight training and in November 2012, he was designated a Naval Aviator. In December 2012, Major Bockman reported to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Training Squadron 204 (VMMT-204) at New River, North Carolina to receive initial training in the MV-22B Osprey. In July 2013, he was assigned to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 265 (VMM-265) at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, Japan. While at VMM-265 he served as the Adjutant, Legal Officer, NATOPS officer, and Flight Line Officer in Charge. While at VMM-265 he participated in multilateral exercises in the Republic of the Philippines, the Kingdom of Thailand, the Republic of Korea, Australia, and Japan. Major Bockman deployed three times as part of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, Aviation Combat Element, and participated in Theater Security Cooperation exercises in Australia and Korea. During his tour he also participated in providing Humanitarian Assistance Disaster Relief to the Philippines in support of Operation Damayan following Typhoon Haiyan as well as relief to mainland Japan following the Fukushima Earthquake.
In 2016 Major Bockman was assigned to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 364 (VMM-364) at Camp Pendleton, California. At the “Purple Foxes”, he served as the Aviation Safety Officer, Weapons and Tactics Instructor, Pilot Training Officer, Assistant Operations Officer, Director of Safety and Standardization, and Operations Officer. In March 2017, he deployed to the Middle East as part of Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force – Crisis Response – Central Command (SMPAGTF-CR-CC) 17.2. During this deployment, Major Bockman flew numerous combat missions in CENTCOM in support of Operation INHERENT RESOLVE. Following this combat deployment, Major Bockman was selected to attend the Weapons and Tactics Instructor Course at Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron One in Yuma, Arizona, and graduated in April 2018. In March 2019, Major Bockman again deployed to the Middle East as part of SPMAGTF-CR-CC 19.2 serving as the Director of Safety and Standardization. Major Bockman flew combat missions and supported exercises in support of joint and coalition forces across the CENTCOM and AFRICOM Areas of Responsibility, which assisted in gaining and maintaining theater security.
Following the return from deployment in October 2019, Major Bockman assumed the role of Operations Officer for VMM-364. During this time and amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic, his squadron was selected to provide numerous urgent patient evacuations from vessels and installations to medical treatment facilities on the west coast. As the Operations Officer, Major Bockman planned and executed evacuations directed by the joint force commander. In May 2020, Major Bockman graduated from the Marine Corps Command and Staff College Distance Education Program. From July to November 2020, as part of an initiative to integrate with special operations forces, Major Bockman facilitated the integration with Naval Special Warfare, Marine Raiders, and Operational Detachment Alpha units in large scale live fire exercise across the country. Major Bockman concluded his time at VMM-364 by ensuring they were prepared for the mission in their upcoming third combat deployment to CENTCOM.
Major Bockman is the recipient of the following personal awards: Air Strike Medal with Numeral 5, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, and the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal.