YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan — Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery took the reins of Command Task Force 70, the Navy’s carrier strike group component in Japan during a ceremony Wednesday.
Montgomery assumed the helm after relieving Rear Adm. J.R. Haley.
Haley’s next assignment is the U.S. Strategic Command in Omaha, Neb., where he will serve as director of operations, Navy officials said.
Montgomery comes from Stuttgart, Germany, where he was deputy director of Plans, Policy and Strategy at the U.S. European Command.
Montgomery was also commander of the Yokosuka-based Destroyer Squadron 15 in 2007-09, and he commanded the USS McCampbell in 2001-03.