- Commander, Naval Surface Forces Atlantic
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Naval Surface Forces Atlantic 
Naval Surface Forces Atlantic sealActive 1 July 1975 to date. Country United States of America Branch United States Navy Type Type Command (TYCOM) Role Administrative Part of United States Fleet Forces Command Garrison/HQ Norfolk Naval Base Website Official Website Commanders Commander Rear Admiral David M. Thomas, Jr., USN[1] Chief of Staff Captain Richard A. Rogers, USN[1] Force Master Chief FORCM James Williams, USN[1] Commander, Naval Surface Forces, Atlantic (COMNAVSURFLANT) is a post within the United States Fleet Forces Command. As Naval Surface Forces, Atlantic, it is a military formation, but the organization is often known as COMNAVSURFLANT. Its headquarters are at the Norfolk Naval Base, Norfolk, Virginia.[2] The commander, as of August 2010, was Rear Admiral David M. Thomas Jr. NAVSURFLANT supervises all surface ships based on the Eastern Seaboard and Gulf Coast. Before the creation of Fleet Forces Command, the organization supervised all surface ships in the United States Atlantic Fleet.
Contents
Overview
Naval Surface Force Atlantic, a U.S. Navy type command (TYCOM) consists of more than 70 ships, 25 separate organizations, and 25,000 personnel.[3] The command was created on 1 July 1975 by the consolidation of the previous Commander, Amphibious Forces, Atlantic Fleet (COMPHIBLANT), Commander, Cruiser-Destroyer Forces, Atlantic Fleet (COMCRUDESLANT), Commander, Service Forces, Atlantic Fleet (COMSERVLANT), and Commander, Minesweeping Force, Atlantic Fleet.[4]
The Destroyer Force, Atlantic Fleet, was established after the First World War. The Force was redesignated as Destroyer Squadron, Atlantic, on October 1, 1921; later to be redesignated again as Destroyer Squadron, Scouting Fleet, U.S. Fleet, on December 8, 1922. With the change in designations in the Fleet, the destroyers were established as Destroyer Squadron, Scouting Force, U.S. Fleet. From October 1, 1937, to July 3, 1940, units of this squadron were transferred continually to the Pacific Fleet. The outbreak of war in Europe reversed this trend.
On July 3, 1940, there were again enough destroyers in the Atlantic to establish a type command, which became known as Destroyers, Atlantic Squadron, U.S. Fleet. When in November 1940, the Atlantic Squadron became the Patrol Force; the destroyer command was renamed Destroyers, Patrol Force, U.S. Fleet. On February 3, 1941, with the reorganization of the Navy and the dissolution of the Patrol Force; the U.S. Atlantic Fleet formed and Destroyers, Atlantic Fleet came into being. On 1 April 1962, the Cruiser-Destroyer Force, Atlantic (CruDesLant), was formed by the merger of the former cruiser and destroyer type commands. USS Yosemite (AD-19), the former DesLant flagship, became the CruDesLant flagship. COMCRUDESLANT was originally headquartered at Naval Station Newport, RI, but transferred to Norfolk in the early 1970s.
Previously, Commander, Service Forces, Atlantic Fleet, whose abbreviation was COMSERVLANT, referred to both the U.S. Navy officer serving in that appointment which was extant from before World War II to 1975, and the command he headed, Service Forces, Atlantic Fleet (SERVLANT).
The Commander, Service Forces, Atlantic, was the commander of all Atlantic Fleet "service"-type ships, such as oilers, tankers, ammunition ships, reefer ships, cargo ships, supply ships, repair ships, and the like. These ships were non-combatant and were intended only to support the warships as they required supplies. ComServLant was a very large organization during World War II, and its sub-units were termed Service Squadrons (ServRons).
Effective 1 October 2001, the U.S. Navy designated a "Lead-Follow" arrangement among its type commands wherein one type commander was designated the senior lead for the specific "type" of weapon system (i.e., naval aviation, submarine warfare, surface warships) throughout the entire operating U.S. Fleet as it pertains to modernization needs, training initiatives, and operational concept development. From that date, these designated fleet TYCOM commanders were to provide guidance to their respective "type" forces via the lead-follow TYCOM arrangement.[5]
The Commander, Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet (COMNAVSURFPAC) was designated as the Commander, Naval Surface Forces (COMNAVSURFOR) for the U.S. Fleet Forces Command, with the Commander, Naval Surface Force Atlantic (COMNAVSURFLANT), serving as his deputy. COMNAVSURFOR is responsible for modernization needs, training initiatives, and operational concept development for the surface warfare community throughout the U.S. Navy's operational fleet.[5][6] It appears that as a result, the COMNAVSURFLANT post was lowered to a Rear Admiral's post instead of the previous Vice Admiral.
Force composition in 2010
- Carrier Strike Groups[7]
- Carrier Strike Group Two
- Carrier Strike Group Six (CSG-6)
- Carrier Strike Group Eight (CSG-8)
- Carrier Strike Group Ten
- Carrier Strike Group Twelve (CSG-12)
- Carrier Strike Group Fourteen
- Destroyer Squadrons[7]
- Destroyer Squadron Two (DESRON-2)
- Destroyer Squadron Fourteen (DESRON-14)
- Destroyer Squadron Twenty-two (DESRON-22)
- Destroyer Squadron Twenty-four (DESRON-24)
- Destroyer Squadron Twenty-six (DESRON-26)
- Destroyer Squadron Twenty-eight (DESRON-28)
- Expeditionary Strike Group Two[7]
- Amphibious Squadron Four (PHIBRON-4)
- Amphibious Squadron Six (PHIBRON-6)
- Amphibious Squadron Eight (PHIBRON-8)
- Fleet Surgical Team Two (FST-2)
- Fleet Surgical Team Four (FST-4)
- Fleet Surgical Team Six (FST-6)
- Fleet Surgical Team Eight (FST-8)
- Naval Beach Group Two[8]
- Amphibious Construction Battalion Two (ACB-2)
- Assault Craft Unit Two (ACU-2)
- Assault Craft Unit Four (ACU-4)
- Beachmaster Unit Two (BMU-2)
- Patrol Craft[7]
- Patrol Craft Crew Alpha
- Patrol Craft Crew Bravo
- Patrol Craft Crew Charlie
- Patrol Craft Crew Delta
- Patrol Craft Crew Echo
- Patrol Craft Crew Foxtrot
- Patrol Craft Crew Golf
- Patrol Craft Crew Hotel
- Patrol Craft Crew India
- Patrol Craft Crew Juliet
- Patrol Craft Crew Kilo
- Patrol Craft Crew Lima
- Patrol Craft Crew Mike
- Support Facilities and Activities[7]
- Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center
- South Central Regional Maintenance Center
- Southeast Regional Maintenance Center
- Commander Strike Force Training Atlantic
- Surface Warfare Development Group
- Afloat Training Group, Atlantic[7]
- Afloat Training Group Ingleside
- Afloat Training Group Mayport
References
- ^ a b c "Command Biographies". COMNAVSURFLANT. U.S. Navy. 2010. http://www.surflant.navy.mil/site%20pages/bios.aspx. Retrieved 2010-08-22.
- ^ Command mailing address listed on the NavSurfLant site is 1430 Mitscher Avenue, Norfolk, VA 23551-2494
- ^ ABOUT COMNAVSURFLANT, accessed August 2010
- ^ David D. Bruhn, Wooden ships and iron men: the U.S. Navy's ocean minesweepers, 1953-1994, p.35, via Google Books, accessed August 2010
- ^ a b Lt. Brauna Carl, Navy Office of Information (8/22/2001 3:03:00 AM). "CNO Announces Plans to Align the Fleet". NNS020724-59. U.S. Navy. http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=2833. Retrieved 2010-06-29.
- ^ "Commander, Naval Surface Forces (COMNAVSURFOR)". Military-US Military Agencies-U.S. Navy. Globalsecurity.org. 2010. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/navy/comnavsurfpac.htm. Retrieved 2010-06-21.
- ^ a b c d e f "Command Listing". COMNAVSURFLANT. U.S. Navy. 2010. http://www.surflant.navy.mil/site%20pages/Cmdlisting.aspx. Retrieved 2010-08-22.
- ^ Standard Naval Distribution List, Admin Fleet Chain of Command, March 2010
External links
Categories:- Commands of the United States Navy
- United States Navy admirals
- Military units and formations established in 1975
- Carrier Strike Groups[7]
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