Pacific submarine force to get new commander

Rear Adm. Douglas McAneny will assume command of the Pacific Fleet Submarine Force on Friday.

He will replace Rear Adm. Joe Walsh, who will become a deputy Pacific Fleet commander following Friday's 10 a.m. ceremonies on the submarine piers at Pearl Harbor. Walsh assumed command in August 2006.

The guest speaker for the ceremony will be Adm. Robert Willard, commander of the Pacific Fleet.

McAneny was the 40th commander of Submarine Group 7 at Yokosuka in Japan from December 2006 to June 2008. During that assignment, he was responsible for coordinating and controlling submarine activities covering nearly 48 percent of the earth's surface in the 7th and 5th Fleet areas of responsibility.

McAney will command 19 Los Angeles-class nuclear attack submarines stationed at Pearl Harbor and Guam and another seven on the West Coast. His command also includes eight Trident ballistic missile submarines and two that have been converted to carry Tomahawk cruise missiles and special warfare troops.

He also will take control of three of the Navy's newest Virginia-class nuclear attack submarines - the USS Hawaii, USS Texas and USS North Carolina - that will be stationed at Pearl Harbor starting in 2009. The Navy says the Virginia class is the first major sub designed specifically for the post-Cold War environment. Each sub costs about $2 billion.

McAneny is a 1978 graduate of the University of Nebraska with a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering and a master's degree in economics from the University of Oklahoma. His first command assignment was as commanding officer of the submarine USS Philadelphia. He has led Submarine Squadron 11 and has served as executive assistant and senior naval aide to the Pacific Fleet commander.