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Nolan Relieves Kelly as Commander, Navy Warfare Development Command

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS060525-05
Release Date: 5/25/2006 1:09:00 PM

From Navy Warfare Development Command Public Affairs

NEWPORT, R.I. (NNS) -- Rear Adm. Roger T. Nolan relieved Rear Adm. John M. Kelly of command of the Navy Warfare Development Command (NWDC) in a ceremony May 19.

Adm. John B. Nathman, commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command and commander, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, was the guest speaker for the ceremony. Nathman is also the reporting senior for NWDC.

"Adm. Kelly has been a tremendous leader for this command. In many ways, he has had to lead change without having all the resources to do it," Nathman told the assembled guests. "He has watched his task as a commander change frequently based on the needs of the [Chief of Naval Operations] and the needs of his fleet commanders. He has provided that integration.

"I want the officers, the men, the women, and the civilian counterparts of your command, Adm. Kelly, to understand that you are making a difference, that you are providing great operation weight to the Navy in a way that must be documented and understood by the joint force as well as by the Navy itself, and that you work every day to provide the leading edge of that discussion for the Navy," he added.

Kelly assumed command of NWDC in September 2003. Under his command, NWDC expanded its leadership role in coordinating both Navy experimentation and the development of new concepts of operations. The command also further developed its preeminence in modeling and simulation for the Navy and now supports complex multi-battle group in port training and other elements of the Navy Continuous Training Environment.

NWDC also manages all Navy doctrine and Navy input into joint, allied and coalition doctrine. The Navy lessons learned program was also enhanced in response to the critical need for rapid and responsive feedback from fleet operations as a result of combat operations, the global war on terrorism, and real-world humanitarian assistance and disaster relief efforts.

During his speech, Nathman noted that he considered NWDC to be the crystallization of the intellectual capital of the U.S. Navy about warfare development.

"I think you are doing a wonderful job in changing the Navy as a warfighting entity and bringing about a change to the operational weight of the United States Navy," he told the members of the command.

"John, you have really changed the Navy," said Nathman. "You can’t see it now, but you will see it in the future as you provide recommendations that take us from strategy to program which will make a difference in the way we fight."

Kelly thanked Nathman "for the recognition of the accomplishments of this magnificent team it has been my great privilege to work with for the past two-and-a-half years."

Kelly addressed the men and women of his command and told them, "You are special people. Together you form a singularly formidable human combat system capable of great depth of thought, possessed of world-class agility and able to execute innovation on a scale and across a spectrum or warfighting requirements sufficient to gain victory in the future despite the many challenges we face."

Kelly will retire Sept. 1, after more than 33 years of naval service.

Nolan comes to NWDC after serving as vice commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command in Norfolk, Va., and as a member of the Secretary of Defense Reserve Forces Policy Board. After six years of initial active service in the Navy, he maintained an active role in the U.S. Navy Reserve and as a prominent Rhode Island businessman. The longtime Portsmouth, R.I., resident was a founder and director of a Newport-based software and engineering management service firm from 1981 until 2004.

As he assumed command, he told the members of his new team, "This command’s performance is vital to our nation’s maritime security just as is the case for our forward-deployed crews on watch around the world today. You hold the key for realizing the future of our Navy."

Nolan then told the other guests at the ceremony, "In Newport, we do not acquire or build the fleet. We no longer maintain nor harbor the fleet. In Newport, we do the hardcore analysis, we design and coordinate fleet experiments and we deliver the concepts of operation and doctrine that prepare us for global maritime strength. We don’t buy it, we don’t build it, we don’t harbor it, but in Newport at NWDC we have and we will continue to make our Navy strong."

The Chief of Naval Operations established the Navy Warfare Development Command in July 1998. Its mission is to focus and champion Navy warfare innovation and concept development in a joint environment; to coordinate the fleet’s experimentation process; and to synchronize, approve and disseminate doctrine.