Groton (Tribune News Service) — Cmdr. Mike Hartzell, an East Lyme, Connecticut, native, turned over command of the nuclear-powered fast attack submarine USS Virginia (SSN 774) at a pierside ceremony at Naval Submarine Base New London on Thursday.
Hartzell, who was born at the naval base and took command of the Virginia in April of 2024, turned over command of the submarine and its 130-person crew to Cmdr. Jeremy Wheelis of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
In a speech during the traditional change of command ceremony, the U.S. Navy said Hartzell praised his crew for their success after facing challenges early on.
“The submarine force absolutely attracts the highest quality sailors in the world, and that makes it such that our top-performing crews and bottom-performing boats’ performance margins are razor thin,” Hartzell said. “Those early setbacks lit a fire underneath this crew. You all relished being the underdogs. It made you hungry for success and hungry dogs ran faster than everyone else.”
Capt. Thomas Flaherty, the commander of Submarine Squadron (SUBRON) 4, said the Virginia “excelled across every measure of performance” under Hartzell’s leadership.
“The crew completed an arduous six-month deployment to the European command theater, the first deployment following a major shipyard period,” Flaherty said. “It’s a challenge that requires precision, toughness, and trust. The Virginia crew, guided by Cmdr. Hartzell, delivered it always. They executed complex missions with skill and poise and they represented our Navy and nation with distinction in multinational exercises alongside our allies.”
The Navy said the Virginia was declared a winner of the Commander, Submarine Force Atlantic 2024 Battle Efficiency competition, which “evaluate(s) both command and overall Force warfighting readiness and recognize(s) outstanding command performance, as well as a litany of other individual and command achievements.”
250828-N-UM744-1005 - USS Virginia (SSN 774) Chief of the Boat, Master Chief Joel Burchwell, right, and Navigator Lt.Cmdr. William McShane react during Cmdr. Michael Hartzell’s speech during Virginia’s change of command ceremony held Thursday, August 28, onboard the fast attack submarine while pierside at Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, Conn. Virginia and crew operate under Submarine Squadron (SUBRON) 4, whose primary mission is to provide attack submarines that are ready, willing, and able to meet the unique challenges of undersea combat and deployed operations in unforgiving environments across the globe. (John Narewski/U.S. Navy)
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