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Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 2 held a change-of-command ceremony aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), June 1.
DESRON 2 is deployed as part of ABECSG and is composed of the guided-missile destroyers USS Mason (DDG 87), USS Nitze (DDG 94), USS Bainbridge (DDG 96), USS Gonzalez (DDG 66), USS Mitscher (DDG 57) and USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG 81).
Capt. Christopher Follin relieved Capt. Sean Anderson as commodore of DESRON 2 in a ceremony attended by Sailors from Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group (ABECSG) in the forecastle.
“It’s meant the world to be commodore of DESRON 2,” said Anderson. “To serve over 2,000 Sailors, has inspired me to be the best I can be.”
Anderson led the ships of DESRON 2 through a rigorous ship’s training availability and composite training unit exercise with ABECSG in preparation for deployment.
“My time has been an honor and was filled with many proud moments,” said Anderson. “To see the growth of the Sailors and ships getting through work-ups to deployment was one of those moments.”
Anderson took command of DESRON 2 on Feb. 24, 2018 and his relief served as Anderson’s deputy commodore for the entirety of his office before taking the helm as the commodore of DESRON 2.
“I am honored, humbled and proud for my family and those Sailors I have been so fortunate to work with and lead,” said Follin. “Without the family sacrifices, their unwavering support and the Navy’s finest Sailors, this opportunity would not have been possible.”
Follin said he encourages his Sailors, no matter their rank, to make it a priority to work together and improve each other.
“We are a Navy family, and we must be able to rely on each other with the trust and confidence that we can depend on,” said Follin.
The longest established destroyer squadron, DESRON 2 first appeared in the U.S. Fleet organization in the spring of 1919, assigned to the Atlantic Fleet. DESRON 2 has since commanded destroyers in World War II, the Cuban Missile Crisis and countless naval operations throughout history including Operation Iraqi Freedom.
“I feel a great deal of responsibility to create opportunities and provide the leadership necessary for all six of our destroyers to be the most lethal asset in our Navy’s arsenal,” said Follin. “‘Second to none’ should not just be our tag line – it must be our culture.”
ABECSG is deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations in support of naval operations to ensure maritime stability and security in the Central Region, connecting the Mediterranean and the Pacific through the western Indian Ocean and three strategic choke points. With Abraham Lincoln as the flagship, deployed strike group assets include staffs, ships and aircraft of Carrier Strike Group 12 (CSG 12), Bainbrdige, Nitze, Mason, USS Leyte Gulf (CG 55) and Carrier Air Wing 7 (CVW 7).
| Date Taken: | 06.01.2019 |
| Date Posted: | 06.16.2019 10:58 |
| Story ID: | 324968 |
| Location: | ARABIAN SEA |
| Web Views: | 151 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Destroyer Squadron 2 Changes Command, by PO3 Michael Singley, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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