Background
Cowan was born in Sacramento, California.
Cowan was born in Sacramento, California.
He enlisted in the United States Navy at the age of 17, received an appointment to and graduated from the United States. Naval Academy in 1966, and was commissioned as a lieutenant the United States Marine Corps.
Vietnam War
He subsequently spent three and a half years in Vietnam. On his first tour he served as a platoon commander at the siege of Khe Sanh, and later was in charge of the 3rd Marine Division"s Kit Carson Scouts program for five months. From 1969 onwards, he was advisor for the South Vietnam military in the Rung Sat Special Zone for two and a half years.
Most of that time was spent with small units and getting experience of raids, ambushes, riverine operations and intelligence gathering with the Central Intelligence Agency.
During his last year he led the Rung Sat"s Provincial Reconnaissance Unit. Intelligence Support Activity ( Industry Standard Architecture)
In April 1983, after having been offered a job at the White House Science Advisor"s office, he was approached by the Intelligence Support Activity ( Industry Standard Architecture) to replace the previous United States. Marine representative and Industry Standard Architecture deputy operations officer
He conducted numerous missions as an Industry Standard Architecture operative and was with the team that hunted down and targeted those responsible for the bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut, which killed 241 servicemen (220 Marines, 18 Navy personnel and 3 Army personnel). He retired from the Industry Standard Architecture after what he perceived as inaction by the Pentagon towards dealing with this incident.
Other
After he retired from the Industry Standard Architecture, he worked as legislative assistant to Senator Warren B. Rudman during the hearings of the Iran Contra scandal, and was a key staff member in drafting the legislation which created the United States. Special Operations Command in Tampa, Florida.
Following his time as a staff assistant to Senator Warren Rudman he again became involved with global terrorism and the Middle East. Cowan was involved in some of the most famous hostage rescues of the Middle East. One of his rescues, the 1990 rescue of American businessmen in Kuwait after Saddam Hussein had invaded that country, was the object of a documentary where some secrets about his organization were revealed, such as the fact that organization operatives used to obtain fake passports issued by a man in Paris to enter countries where people were being held.
This operation was conducted in combination with former Central Intelligence Agency director Bill Colby.
Following the events of 9/11, Cowan was called on again by the government and he continues to support various Pentagon and Homeland Security programs. But he is known internationally for his expertise in counterterrorism, intelligence, and military special operations.
He has also been a Fox News Channel contributor since 2001, has been a co-host with Ambassador Dick Carlson on the radio and television show Danger Zone, and he has written articles for The Washington Post and been featured in several television shows apart from the documentary such as 60 Minutes, Larry King Live and others He co-wrote Snatching Hillary, A Satirical Novel (Tulip Hill Publishing, 2014, ) with Dick Carlson.
Cowan has a graduate degree in computer science and is a member of Mensa.