Vice Adm. Linda L. Fagan was nominated Monday by the White House to be the next vice commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard. Pending Senate confirmation, Fagan would serve as the first woman to be promoted to a four-star rank in the Coast Guard.
She currently serves as the commander of the Coast Guard Pacific Area, overseeing all Coast Guard missions from the Rocky Mountains to the waters off the East Coast of Africa. Fagan concurrently serves as commander, Defense Force West and provides Coast Guard mission support to the Department of Defense and Combatant Commanders.
Fagan is a 1985 graduate of the Coast Guard Academy and is the Coast Guard’s first-ever Gold Ancient Trident, the officer with the longest service record in the Marine Safety field.
“Vice Adm. Fagan is an outstanding leader with 36 years of Coast Guard operations, policy-making, joint service, and interagency experience,” said Adm. Karl L. Schultz, Coast Guard commandant. “Throughout her distinguished career, she has been a top performer and a trailblazer. As the Coast Guard’s first female four-star admiral, and President Biden’s nominee to serve as the Coast Guard’s 32nd vice commandant, Adm. Fagan will be instrumental in moving the service forward at a critical juncture in our history.”
“I am pleased that President Biden has nominated Vice Admiral Linda Fagan to be the vice commandant of the United States Coast Guard," Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas said in a statement. "She is a superb leader who, as the 32nd vice commandant, will guide the Coast Guard at a time when its mission of securing our maritime borders, ports, and waterways has never been more important. If confirmed, Vice Admiral Fagan would serve as the first woman to be promoted to a four-star rank in the Coast Guard. We are grateful to Vice Admiral Fagan for continuing her service to country, for the trail she has blazed, and for inspiring us all.”
Pending confirmation, Fagan is expected to relieve current Coast Guard Vice Commandant Adm. Charles W. Ray on June 18.
