New air facility CO to be sworn in on Tuesday
EL CENTRO – Capt. Michael D. Lee is scheduled to assume command of Naval Air Facility El Centro (NAFEC) at a ceremony 11 a.m., Tuesday.
In a traditional naval ceremony, leadership of the installation will be transferred from Capt. William A. Perkins to Lee. The guest speaker for the event is Rear Adm. Stephen Barnett, Commander Navy Region Southwest.
Perkins has served as the installation’s commanding officer since March 2020. He will be retiring after 28 years in the Navy.
“This is a bittersweet moment in our life,” Perkins said in a newsletter to families on the base. “Bitter because I am saying goodbye to the most stellar workforce I have ever had the honor of serving alongside, and sweet because my family will turn the page on my Navy career and open new doorways and new experiences in the next chapter of our lives.”
Perkins’ successor, Lee, is a native of Honolulu, Hawaii. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., with a Bachelor of Science in political science in 1997. He was commissioned as an ensign and later earned his designation as a naval aviator in 1999.
Lee’s operational assignments include flying the LAMPS MK III SH- 60B Seahawk helicopter with Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Light (HSL) 47, Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego, during which time he deployed aboard USS Antietam (CG 54) and twice aboard USS John Young ( DD 973). He was selected as aide-decamp to Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 2, forward deployed to Bahrain as Expeditionary Force/Contingency Force (TF) 59 and Combined Task Force 158. Later, he reported to HSL-49 and served as officer in charge of De
tachment 3 aboard USS Jarrett (FFG 33) conducting counter- illicit trafficking operations in support of U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command. Post-deployment he served as operations officer for HSL- 49. Most recently he was the air boss aboard USS Essex (LHD 2), overseeing the first combat deployment of the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter to U.S. 5th Fleet.
Assignments to shore billets include serving as a flight instructor with HSL-41 during which time he earned an Executive Master of Business Administration with the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif. He served as deputy safety officer ( N45A) for Commander, Naval Air Forces. As executive officer and then commanding officer of Navy Recruiting District (NRD) Los Angeles, he led the country’s most geographically distributed NRD with units throughout Los Angeles, the Hawaiian Islands, Guam, and Japan.
He currently serves as executive officer, Naval Leadership and Ethics Command San Diego.
His personal awards include the Meritorious Service Medal ( three awards), Navy and Marine Corps Commen
dation Medal ( three awards), Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal (two awards), as well as various campaign and unit awards.
“I am excited to return to NAF El Centro after many years,” Lee said during a staff meeting. “I remember well my early days flying around the deserts as part of a helicopter detachment, and now I have the pleasure of leading this outstanding team.”
The change-of-command ceremony is scheduled to be livestreamed on the base’s Facebook page www. facebook.com/nafec.