Lieutenant General Robert B. Flowers was born in Pennsylvania and resided in several areas of the world as his family moved during his father's military career. Following graduation and commissioning from the Virginia Military Institute

Virginia Military Institute

The Virginia Military Institute , located in Lexington, Virginia, is the oldest state-supported military college and one of six senior military colleges in the United States. Unlike any other military college in the United States—and in keeping with its founding principles—all VMI students are...

 in 1969, he completed Airborne

United States Army Airborne School

The United States Army Airborne School — widely known as Jump School — conducts the basic paratrooper training for the United States armed forces. It is operated by the 1st Battalion , 507th Infantry, United States Army Infantry School, Fort Benning, Georgia...

 and Ranger

Ranger School

The United States Army Ranger School is an intense 61-day combat leadership course oriented towards small-unit tactics. It has been called the "toughest combat course in the world" and "is the most physically and mentally demanding leadership school the Army has to offer". The course is conducted...

 training and began his career as an Engineer Officer. He holds a master's degree in civil engineering from the University of Virginia

University of Virginia

The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...

 and is a Registered Professional Engineer

Professional Engineer

Regulation of the engineering profession is established by various jurisdictions of the world to protect the safety, well-being and other interests of the general public, and to define the licensure process through which an engineer becomes authorized to provide professional services to the...

. Prior to his selection as Chief of Engineers

Chief of Engineers

The Chief of Engineers commands the US Army Corps of Engineers. As a staff officer at The Pentagon, the Chief advises the Army on engineering matters and serves as the Army's topographer and the proponent for real estate and other related engineering programs....

 and Commanding General of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, he served as the Commanding General of the Maneuver Support Center and Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.

His other commands include an Engineer Company in Germany;

• 307th Engineer Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division;
• 20th Engineer Brigade
  20th Engineer Brigade
  The 20th Engineer Brigade is a combat engineer brigade assigned to the XVIII Airborne Corps of the United States Army stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Although the brigade was identified as an Airborne unit, not all of its subordinate units were airborne qualified—despite the Airborne tab...
  
  , XVIII Airborne Corps;
• Mississippi Valley Division
  Mississippi Valley Division
  The United States Army Corps of Engineers Mississippi Valley Division and the complementary Mississippi River Commission are responsible for maintaining the Mississippi River as a navigable waterway while preventing flooding. This includes the operation of harbor and lock and dam facilities up...
  
   of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Operational deployments include

• command of an expanded brigade of 10 battalions (7,700 soldiers) during Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm;
• Task Force Engineer for the Joint Task Force in Somalia;
• Deputy Chief of Staff for Engineering (Forward), U.S. Army Europe in Bosnia.

Other assignments include

• Assistant Division Commander, 2nd Infantry Division (Mechanized), Eighth U.S. Army, South Korea
• Deputy Commanding General and Assistant Commandant, U.S. Army Engineer Center and School, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri
  Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri
  Fort Leonard Wood is a census-designated place in Pulaski County, Missouri, United States. The population was 13,667 at the 2000 census. It is named in honor of Major General Leonard Wood, who was awarded the Medal of Honor...
  
  
• Branch Chief, Counter-narcotics Operations Division, Washington, D.C.
• Combat Developer, Combined Arms Center, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
• Field Engineer and Research Project Manager for the Portland Engineer District;
• Staff Engineer in Thailand for the Udon
  Udon Thani
  Udon Thani is a city in Isan, north-east Thailand, and the capital of Udon Thani Province.-Location:The province of Udon Thani has a population of 1,467.200, the city alone 500.000. Geographical location and is approximately 560 km from Bangkok...
  
  Detachment and Northern Thailand.