VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The Navy's East Coast Master Jet Base has a new leader.
Naval Air Station Oceana held a change of command ceremony Friday in a ceremonial hangar, filled with senior Navy leadership, city officials, family and friends.
Captain Josh Appezzato took over as the 49th commanding officer of the installation. He succeeds Captain Steve Djunaedi, who is retiring after 28 years of service.
“I cannot overstate the impact your leadership had," Rear Adm. Carl Lahti, commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic, said at the ceremony.
"You lived and breathed Oceana, dealing with a broad scope of issues requiring you to balance the interests of the fleet, our warfighters, and their families and community."
During his time at NAS Oceana, he led 19 departments and 79 tenant commands, four Carrier Air Wings, and more than 34,000 personnel.
“I learned everything I know about service, leadership and community from the Navy, and from the people that make up our incredible team here at NAS Oceana,” Djunaedi said during the ceremony. " ... Thank you for everything. Serving alongside you has been an honor beyond words.”
Appezzato previously served at the Navy Fighter Weapons School and remained on the staff as a TOPGUN instructor, and made combat deployments with VFA-22, the Fighting Redcocks; VFA-154, the Black Knights; and VFA-41, the Black Aces. He also served as the Air Boss on USS George Washington (CVN 73).
Oceana is home to 17 squadrons of F/A-18 Super Hornets. The base includes Dam Neck Annex and Fentress Field Auxiliary Landing Field, and is the second largest employer in Virginia Beach, after Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story.