USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20) held a change of command ceremony before local dignitaries, distinguished guests, ship's officers, Sailors, and civilian mariners, Dec. 1.

Capt. Kavon Hakimzadeh relieved Capt. Carlos Sardiello as the 29th commanding officer of Mount Whitney. Commander, U.S. 6th Fleet Vice Adm. Christopher W. Grady presided over the ceremony.

Quotes:

"Ours is a world in transition, and we must always be prepared to deter, and if needed, defend all that we hold dear. The professionalism and capability of everyone aboard Mount Whitney directly enhances our warfighting readiness."

"My guidance to you is simple: take charge, lead, fight and win! Always keep your cutlass sharp and if you need help, ask!"
- Vice Adm. Christopher W. Grady, commander, U.S. 6th Fleet


"To the Mount Whitney families, none of this is possible without your support, so we reaffirm our love, admiration and gratitude to you."

You've demonstrated exemplary loyalty to each other, to the ship, and to our Navy. I'm proud of what you do, and I wish you well in the future."
- Capt. Carlos Sardiello, commanding officer, USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20)


"Back when I first saw the Mount Whitney, I would never have dreamed that I would someday have the opportunity to command here."

"Your work over the past year with your jam-packed operational scheduling and exercise schedule and your countless partner nation engagements...match the accomplishments of any other warship in the United States Navy over the past year. They absolutely do. It's incredible work."
- Capt. Kavon Hakimzadeh, commanding officer, USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20)

Quick Facts:
USS Mount Whitney serves as the command ship for Commander, Sixth Fleet/Commander, Joint Command Lisbon/Commander, Striking Force NATO, and has a complement of 150 enlisted personnel, 12 officers and 150 civilian mariners from Military Sealift Command.

USS Mount Whitney was the first U.S. Navy combatant to permanently accommodate women on board.

Sardiello was the 28th commanding officer of the Mount Whitney.

During Sardiello's tenure Mount Whitney participated in numerous exercises and operations, including Atlantic Resolve, the Maritime Theater Missile Defense Forum's At Sea Demonstration (ASD), BALTOPS 2016 in the Baltic Sea, and Exercise Austere Challenge in the Black Sea.

Mount Whitney, forward-deployed to Gaeta, Italy, operates with a combined crew of U.S. Navy Sailors and Military Sealift Command civil service mariners. The civil service mariners perform navigation, deck, engineering and supply service operations, while military personnel support communications, weapons systems and security. It is one of only two seaborne Joint Command Platforms in the U.S. Navy, both of which are forward-deployed.

U.S. 6th Fleet, headquartered in Naples, Italy, conducts the full spectrum of joint and naval operations, often in concert with allied, joint, and interagency partners, in order to advance U.S. national interests and security and stability in Europe and Africa.

For more information, visit http://www.navy.mil, http://www.facebook.com/usnavy, or http://www.twitter.com/usnavy.

For more news from Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa/U.S. 6th Fleet, visit http://www.navy.mil/.