SOUTH CHINA SEA –
Commander, Task Force 70 held a change of command ceremony while underway aboard the U.S. Navy’s only forward-deployed aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), in the South China Sea, June 23.
Rear Adm. Pat Hannifin relieved Rear Adm. Buzz Donnelly as Commander, Task Force (CTF) 70/Commander, Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 5. Hannifin becomes the 78th commander of Task Force 70, after serving as Joint Staff J5 Deputy Director for Political-Military Affairs Asia.
As CTF70/CSG5 Donnelly led the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group (RRNCSG) through two patrols in U.S. 7th Fleet, conducting numerous joint/multilateral exercises and operations with Australia, Canada, Japan, and the Republic of Korea.
“I am proud of the work we accomplished as a staff and strike group team, effectively demonstrating the flexibility and capability of our force, while integrating closely with a wide-range of allies and partners in pursuit of the same goals in this dynamic region,” said Donnelly. “Your professionalism as a combined and joint force team are a critical piece of those efforts, and set a legacy I am extremely honored to have been a part of.”
Both Donnelly and Hannifin previously served as commanding officer of Ronald Reagan, with Hannifin relieving Donnelly in 2018.
“It is a privilege to return to this critical theater with a familiar team,” said Hannifin. “I look forward to strengthening relationships with our allies and partners, protecting international rules and our common interests in a Free and Open Indo-Pacific.”
Hannifin is a San Diego native, and commissioned in 1991 after earning degrees in Engineering and International Relations from the University of Pennsylvania and University of San Diego.
Donnelly’s next assignment is Director, Air Warfare Division, N98 in Washington, D.C.
Task Force 70 is forward-deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific region. U.S. 7th Fleet is the U.S. Navy's largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, and routinely interacts and operates with allies and partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region.