Elliot Rutherford was born in Las Vegas, Nevada and was originally a security guard in a casino. After a few years, Rutherford joined the United States Air Force, flying through basic training and being assigned to Eglin Air Force Base in Florida training as a pilot with the 33rd Fighter Wing. Afterwards he went overseas to the Middle East and soon decided to train in black ops, taking the notice of Air Force Chiefs looking to fill Stargate Command positions, who soon asked him to join the SGC. Rutherford joined the SGC without hesitation. A few years later he joined the Atlantis expedition and led his own team. (SGA: "The DVD Collection 85")