Fleet Commander

Admiral Delgado was commissioned as a Lieutenant Junior Grade in 1988 and, since then, has been closely associated with operational assignments on land and at sea.

He specialized in Submarine Weapons and subsequently completed the Tactical Action Officer (TAO) and Armed Forces Staff Courses, as well as NATO’s Operational Planning Course at NATO’s School in Germany. As a flag officer, he completed the General Officers and Ambassadors Course at NATO’s Defense College in Rome.

At sea, he served as an officer on the ‘Descubierta’-class corvettes during the early years of his career, on the frigate ‘Reina Sofía’ for almost five years, and in several Staff positions, such as the United Kingdom High Readiness Headquarters (UKMARFOR) and NATO’s Standing Naval Group One (SNMG1) as Chief of Operations aboard three U.S. Navy flagships. The SNMG1 deployment in 2007 included the following activities: ‘presence operations’ in the Caribbean, NATO Response Force (NRF) certification, and the circumnavigation of Africa, with ‘presence operations’ in the Gulf of Guinea and the Horn of Africa. During his different tenures at sea, he participated in Operations ‘Sharp Guard’ in the former Yugoslavia, ‘Endurance Freedom’ in the Persian Gulf, ‘Active Endeavour’ in the Mediterranean, and ‘Ocean Shield’ in the Indian Ocean.

Ashore, as naval officer, he served in the Combat Assessment and Operational Qualification Center (CEVACO in its Spanish initials), the Fleet Staff, the Spanish Navy General Staff, both in the Operations and Plans Divisions, the Defense Staff, and at NATO’s Maritime Command Headquarters in Naples, including his participation in Operation ‘Unified Protector’ in Libya.

He has been Commanding Officer of the patrol vessel ‘Formentor’, the minesweeper ‘Genil’, the minehunter ‘Segura’, and the AEGIS frigate ‘Álvaro de Bazán’, deploying in the Indian Ocean as flagship of COMSNMG2.

After commanding the AEGIS frigate, he joined the Plans Division of the Spanish Navy Staff, assuming responsibility for the development of the future F110 frigates and the Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) capability.

Admiral Delgado assumed command of NATO’s Standing Naval Group 1 (COMSNMG1) during the Spanish rotation in 2016. He deployed to the North Atlantic and the Baltic Sea, where he participated in three operational missions. Following his command, he was appointed Chief of Strategic Plans of the Spanish Navy Staff and subsequently Secretary General of the Joint Defense Staff in Madrid.

From August 2019 to July 2025, he served at the Allied Maritime Command in Northwood, first as DCOS Support, and then as Chief of Staff for the last three years.

On September 8, 2025, he was appointed Fleet Commander (ALFLOT).

He is married to Belén and they have three children.