Capt. Daniel C. Grieco, outgoing commanding officer for USS Theodore Roosevelt, makes remarks during a change of command ceremony Tuesday, July 21, 2015, in Bahrain. The ship is in Bahrain during a short break from an eight-month deployment in the Middle East. (Chris Church/Stars and Stripes)
Capt. Daniel C. Grieco, outgoing commanding officer for USS Theodore Roosevelt, makes remarks during a change of command ceremony Tuesday, July 21, 2015, in Bahrain. The ship is in Bahrain during a short break from an eight-month deployment in the Middle East. (Chris Church/Stars and Stripes)
Capt. Daniel C. Grieco, outgoing commanding officer, left, salutes Capt. Craig A. Clapperton, incoming commanding officer, right, for the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt during a change of command ceremony in Bahrain Tuesday, July 21, 2015. (Chris Church/Stars and Stripes)
Sailors stationed aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt at a change of command ceremony in Bahrain Tuesday, July 21, 2015. The Roosevelt and its carrier strike group both got new commanders during the ceremony held while the ship is in port during a short break from an eight-month deployment in the Middle East. (Chris Church/Stars and Stripes)
Capt. Daniel C. Grieco, USS Theodore Roosevelt's outgoing commander, salutes as he's ceremoniously rung off the aicraft carrier one last time Tuesday, July 21, 2015. Commanding Officers are rung on and off their ship as they arrive and depart. The Roosevelt and its carrier strike group both got new commanders Tuesday during a ceremony in Bahrain. (Chris Church/Stars and Stripes)
A sideboy salutes as the incoming Roosevelt carrier strike group commander, Rear Adm. Roy J. Kelley, is ceremoniously rung onto the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt Tuesday, July 21, 2015. Officers of a higher paygrade than the ship's commanding officer are rung on and off the ship when arriving and departing. The Roosevelt and its carrier strike group both got new commanders during a change of command ceremony held in Bahrain. (Chris Church/Stars and Stripes)
Rear Adm. Andrew L. Lewis, outgoing commander of the Roosevelt carrier strike group, makes remarks during a change of command ceremony aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt Tuesday, July 21, 2015. The Roosevelt and its carrier strike group both got new commanders while the ship is in Bahrain on a short break from an eight-month deployment in the Middle East. (Chris Church/Stars and Stripes)
Rear Adm. Roy J. Kelley, incoming commander for the Roosevelt carrier strike group, at a change of command ceremony aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt Tuesday, July 21, 2015. The Roosevelt and its carrier strike group both got new commanders during while the ship is in Bahrain during a short break from an eight-month deployment in the Middle East. (Chris Church/Stars and Stripes)
MANAMA, Bahrain — The aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt and its carrier strike group got new commanders Tuesday during a short break from their eight-month deployment in the Middle East.
Rear Adm. Roy J. Kelley took over for Rear Adm. Andrew L. Lewis as the carrier strike group 12 commander, while Capt. Daniel C. Grieco turned over command of the carrier to Capt. Craig A. Clapperton.
Kelley and Clapperton will command the Roosevelt and its strike group through the latter half of their deployment in the 5th Fleet area of responsibility, which ends in the fall. Clapperton will also be in charge of the Roosevelt during a three-carrier shift, when it will head to San Diego — its new home port — taking the place of the USS Ronald Reagan, which will head to Yokosuka, Japan, to allow the USS George Washington to return to the States for nuclear refueling.
“I will challenge the best crew on the best ship in the most powerful Navy in the world to continue to improve themselves and their ship,” Clapperton said.
Kelley said he was honored to be joining carrier strike group 12 at a critical point in its deployment. “Your presence here demonstrates our country’s commitment to the region. Your near-perfect execution of our missions creates conditions that enable trust and cooperation.”
Lewis had been commanding carrier strike group 12, which includes four other ships, nine aircraft squadrons and about 6,000 sailors and Marines, since May 2014. During deployment, the Roosevelt has supported airstrikes against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria as part of Operation Inherent Resolve.
church.chris@stripes.com Twitter: @CChurchStripes
