Change of Command Ceremony
From USGC Eagle Public Affairs
May 31, 2009
ABOARD U.S. COAST GUARD CUTTER EAGLE, Northern Atlantic Ocean - A change of command ceremony is scheduled for the Coast Guard Cutter Eagle, 9 a.m., June 27, 2009 at the cruise ship terminal in Charleston, South Carolina.Captain Eric C. Jones will assume responsibility as commanding officer of Eagle from Captain Chris Sinnett during a time-honored ceremony that formally transfers authority and accountability from one individual to another.
Sinnett has been Eagle’s commanding officer since July 2006. His previous afloat assignments include:
- Student engineer – Coast Guard Cutter Taney, Portsmouth, Virginia
- Damage control assistant – Coast Guard Cutter Tampa – Portsmouth, Virginia
- Executive office – Coast Guard Cutter Naushon – Ketchikan, Alaska
- Commanding Officer – Coast Guard Cutter Manitou – Miami Beach, Florida
- Executive office, Coast Guard Cutter Eagle – New London, Connecticut
- Commanding officer – Coast Guard Cutter Spencer – Boston, Massachusetts
Jones reports to Eagle after serving as the deputy chief, Coast Guard Office of Congressional and Government Affairs, at United States Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, DC. His previous afloat assignments include:
- Deck watch officer and 1st lieutenant – Coast Guard Cutter Venturous – Long Beach, California
- Commanding officer and plankowner – Coast Guard Cutter Tybee – San Diego, California
- Navigator and executive officer – Coast Guard Cutter Eagle – New London, Connecticut
- Executive Officer – Coast Guard Cutter – Portsmouth, Virginia
Jones most recently served afloat as the commanding officer of the 270-foot Coast Guard Cutter Harriet Lane home ported in Portsmouth.
“Coast Guard Cutter Eagle is the seventh U.S. Coast Guard cutter to bear the name in a proud line dating back to 1792. The ship was built in 1936 by the Blohm and Voss Shipyard in Hamburg, Germany and commissioned as Horst Wessel, one of three sail training ships operated by Nazi Germany to train cadets for the growing German navy. Following World War II, it was taken as a war prize by the United States. A U.S. Coast Guard crew, aided by the German crew still onboard, sailed the tall ship in 1946 from Bremerhaven, Germany to its new homeport in New London.
Eagle now serves as a seagoing classroom for future officers of the U.S. Coast Guard. A seasoned permanent crew of six officers and 55 enlisted personnel maintain the ship year round and provide a strong base of knowledge and seamanship for the training of up to 150 cadets or officer candidates at a time.