YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan — Rear Adm. Terry Kraft took command of Naval Forces Japan during a ceremony Friday.

Kraft, a pilot and graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, arrives in Yokosuka after a tour as head of the Navy Warfare Development Command in Norfolk, Va.

His first tour in Japan came as a bombardier attached to the USS Midway, which participated in Operation Desert Storm in 1991. His first impression of the country came courtesy of a 1969 Honda minibike that his father Roy, a retired Navy captain, brought home after a trip there.

“Needless to say, I became a big fan of Japan at a very young age,” Kraft said.

Kraft previously commanded the amphibious transport dock USS Shreveport and the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan.

Kraft relieved Rear Adm. Dan Cloyd, who moves to Fleet Forces Command as director of maritime operations in Norfolk.

Kraft’s arrival caps a summer of significant Navy leadership turnover in Japan. On July 31, Vice Adm. Robert Thomas took over the Japan-based 7th Fleet, while Capt. David Glenister assumed command of Yokosuka Naval Base earlier this month.

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