He has served afloat on both
nuclear powered
attack and
strategic missile submarines of the
Atlantic and
Pacific Fleets including command of the submarine . He also commanded Submarine Development Squadron Five in
San Diego, California. Wachendorf's shore assignments included deputy assistant for
Chief of Naval Operation/
Vice Chief of Naval Operations decision coordination, branch head for anti-submarine warfare, chief of the Joint Staff's nuclear/counter-proliferation division. He has also served as executive assistant to the
Joint Staff director of strategic plans and policy (J-5), and director of the OPNAV Strategy and Policy Division (N51) and U.S. defense attaché to Russia. Promoted to two stars, while serving in Russia, Wachendorf's final assignment on active duty was as Chief of Staff,
Joint Forces Command, 2006–2008, when he was responsible for managing the command's warfighting initiatives and providing guidance to the command's executive staff on day-to-day matters. Additionally, he supervised all of the command's administrative issues. ==Post-Naval Career==