Sailors from SubGroup 7 hold flags in front of the USS Olympia at a change of command ceremony on Tuesday. (Joseph Giordono / S&S)
Sailors from SubGroup 7 hold flags in front of the USS Olympia at a change of command ceremony on Tuesday. (Joseph Giordono / S&S)
Rear Adm. John J. Donnelly, new commander of SubGroup 7, salutes a piping boatswains mate after walking off the USS Bremerton submarine. (Joseph Giordono / S&S)
YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan — One of the most strategically important, yet low-profile, commands in the region surfaced Tuesday to fete outgoing and incoming commanders.
Submarine Group 7 — which has operational control of all submarines in the 7th Fleet area but has no vessels of its own in Yokosuka — opened its gates for a day to say farewell to Rear Adm. Joseph Enright.
Enright, who took the helm of SubGroup 7 two years ago, is to become director of special programs in the office of the undersecretary of defense.
His replacement, Rear Adm. John J. Donnelly, most recently served as deputy director, operations and logistics at the U.S. Strategic Command in Offutt Air Force Base, Neb.
Donnelly, a second-generation naval officer whose two grown sons are also in the Navy, is familiar with Japan.
Before his stint at Offutt, Donnelly was chief of staff for the Yokosuka-based 7th Fleet.
The ceremony — which included virtual appearances of one-, two- and three-star admirals — was held on the deck of the USS Bremerton, a Los Angeles class nuclear attack submarine in port at Yokosuka.
Directly behind the crowd was the USS Olympia, another nuclear fast-attack submarine.
In between, rows of SubGroup 7 sailors stood at attention in their dress whites, clutching command flags.
Although known for its preference for secrecy and separation, on Tuesday the submariners held a public ceremony, inviting guests to tour both the Olympia and Bremerton.
During the ceremony, Enright thanked the sailors who served with him and the leadership for giving him leeway.
“You challenge us, then you get out of the way and let us do the job,” he said.
“Never in my 32 years in the Navy have I worked with a finer group of men and women.”
In his short remarks, Donnelly said he and his family were happy to have another overseas tour.
“To return to Japan, where we have so many friends, is a dream come true,” he said.
Just after the ceremony, the cloudy skies finally let loose pouring rain.
“This,” said one officer as he left the ceremony, “is submariner weather.”
