Admiral Linda Fagan (USCG) becomes America's first female service chief

June 1, 2022 2:38 PM

With today's United States Coast Guard Commandant change of command ceremony, Admiral Linda Fagan has become the first woman in US history to hold the top position in one of America's military services. (WaPo, NYT, previous statement from the Office of the President)
posted by Nerd of the North (9 comments total)

Admiral Fagan steps into the top job after holding the USCG's second in command position, Vice Commandant, from 2021 - 2022.

Two other women had preceded her in that position, Admirals Vivien Crae (2006 - 2009) and Sally Brice-O'Hara (2010 - 2012).
posted by Nerd of the North at 3:22 PM on June 1, 2022 [2 favorites]

“There’s no one more qualified to lead the proud women and men of the Coast Guard, and she will also be the first woman to serve as commandant of the Coast Guard, the first woman to lead any branch of the United States armed forces,” Biden said. “And it’s about time.”

Her fruit salad is pretty impressive.
posted by kirkaracha at 3:47 PM on June 1, 2022 [5 favorites]

Well it looks like someone finally took Cool Papa Bell’s advice.
posted by chrchr at 4:54 PM on June 1, 2022 [12 favorites]

My niece is in her first summer at the USCGA, and the more I learn about that service the more impressed I am. They seem really competent and more down-to-earth than the other uniformed services.

Plus the few folks I know who were Coasties are really Good People.
posted by wenestvedt at 7:01 PM on June 1, 2022 [2 favorites]

The other services (I was Army) may talk trash, but we know who is out there every day saving lives.

We all also talk trash about every other branch and even sub divisions within our own branches, so it should all be taken lightly. Like rival cities making fun of each other's sports teams.
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 7:31 PM on June 1, 2022 [3 favorites]

I'm of the opinion that the Coast Guard saves more lives than the US Navy does, every single day. On a fraction of the budget and the prestige. Hell, the fucking Border Patrol has a larger budget than the Coast Guard, and they mostly appear to be fascists.
posted by suelac at 9:02 PM on June 1, 2022 [6 favorites]

It’s weird how the crypto fascist military industrial complex gives more money to the border patrol rather than the coast guard, huh.
posted by The River Ivel at 2:23 AM on June 2, 2022 [4 favorites]

Glad to hear. For what it's worth, it was a woman USCG captain who finally ordered the billionaires at Taylor Energy off the ocean in its 16 year old oil spill / methane leak, and she did it knowing the oil company would sue her and the clean up company and make her life difficult.

Captain Luttrell prevailed. Although the methane is still leaking, the ocean is cleaner now. Thank you, USCG.

WPost:

[Adm. Fagan] is also the Coast Guard’s first Gold Ancient Trident, which means she is the officer with the longest service record in the marine safety field.

This is good news to my ears, given that we just had one of our largest marine tragedies last year in the Gulf, with the loss of 13 seamen, and I am afraid that the hotter Gulf temps mean that we will see more unsafe winds in the future.
posted by eustatic at 2:10 PM on June 2, 2022

That Cool Papa Bell meta-thread is full of posters I really miss.
posted by pickinganameismuchharderthanihadanticipated at 4:30 PM on June 2, 2022 [3 favorites]