Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak and crew held a change of command ceremony, Thursday, in Kodiak.
Capt. Timothy Williams relieved Capt. Nathan Coulter as the new commanding officer of Air Station Kodiak, in which Rear Adm. Megan Dean, 17th Coast Guard District commander, presided over the ceremony.
“I’m excited to be stationed back in Kodiak again and honored to take command of Air Station Kodiak from Captain Coulter,” said Williams. “I look forward to leading our elite crews as we continue to build upon the legacy for operational success across Alaska and the Arctic.”
Williams is reporting to Air Station Kodiak from Coast Guard Headquarters, where he served as the Executive Assistant to the Coast Guard’s Director of Acquisitions Programs. Kodiak will be Williams’ fifth air station and his first command assignment.
Williams received his commission from Coast Guard Officer Candidate School in 2002 and holds a Bachelor of Science and Masters of Science degrees in Aeronautical Science from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, a Masters degree in Systems Engineering from Johns Hopkins University, and a Masters degree in National Resourcing and Strategy from National Defense University’s Eisenhower School.
“Serving as the commanding officer of Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak has been the honor of a lifetime,” said Coulter. “The crew of Air Station Kodiak has supported search and rescue operations, national strategic objectives, protected U.S. sovereignty, disrupted narcotics trafficking and combated illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing.
Coulter will retire after 26 years of dedicated service.
The change of command ceremony is a military tradition representing a formal transfer of authority and responsibility for a unit from one commanding or flag officer to another. The passing of colors, standards, or ensigns from an outgoing commander to an incoming one ensures that the unit and its members are never without official leadership, a continuation of trust.
Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak was commissioned as an Air Detachment on April 17, 1947 with one coastal aircraft and represented the first permanent Coast Guard aviation resource in Alaska. Air Station Kodiak has grown into one of the Coast Guard’s largest and busiest aviation units with a current complement of 15 aircraft. The members of Air Station Kodiak remain committed to safeguarding lives, property, and the environment through comprehensive search and rescue efforts, joint air operations and law enforcement missions that promote U.S. maritime domain awareness throughout the region.
