YOKOSUKA, Japan— Capt. Matthew Tolhurst relieved Capt. Lance Flood as Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Far East commanding officer in a change of command ceremony on board Fleet Activities Yokosuka, Japan, July 12.
Tolhurst also assumes responsibility as regional engineer for Commander, Navy Regions Japan and Korea. Rear Adm. Jeffrey Kilian, Commander, Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command Pacific, presided over the ceremony.
“I am truly honored to join the NAVFAC Far East team as their next Commanding Officer. As a former member of NAVFAC Far East from previous tours, I know first-hand the professionalism, expertise, and dedication that each and every member of this organization brings every day,” said Tolhurst, a Lakewood, Ohio native. “NAVFAC Far East is a critical enabler of fleet operations across the Western Pacific, and I look forward to continuing the laser focus on fleet readiness and warfighting, masterfully executed by my predecessors.”
Tolhurst most recently served as the Director of Military Construction (MILCON) and Capital Improvements, for the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations, and Environment in Washington D.C., where he developed and coordinated policy impacting the Department of the Navy’s MILCON program in coordination with stakeholders from the Navy and Marine Corps, the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and Congressional Staff. This will be his fifth tour in Japan, with deployments to Okinawa and Camp Fuji with the Seabees, having been stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, and having served at NAVFAC Far East and Commander, Navy Region Japan as the Assistant Regional Engineer.
He takes the helm from Flood, who worked previously at NAVFAC Far East as public works officer at Navy Support Facility Diego Garcia (British Indian Ocean Territory) from 2015 until 2016. NAVFAC Far East was also his second command in the Indo-Pacific, having served as Commander, 30th Naval Construction Regiment/Task Group 75.5, Naval Construction Forces, 7th Fleet from 2020 until 2022. Flood’s naval service began in 1997 after graduating from Clemson University with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and graduate degrees in Business Administration and Civil Engineering from Auburn and North Carolina State Universities, respectively. He received his commission through Officer Candidate School in Pensacola, Fla. He is a registered Professional Engineer in the State of Washington.
During the ceremony, Kilian presented Flood with the Legion of Merit (Gold Star in lieu of the Third Award. He also received a Letter of Appreciation from Shunko Gakuen, a home for Japanese children separated from their parents which Seabees and NAVFAC members have been sponsoring and providing support to since 1945.
Flood led NAVFAC Far East’s more than 2,100 personnel at 11 Public Works Departments across two Navy Regions to execute an annual investment program of $1 billion that directly enhanced U.S. 7th Fleet, III Marine Expeditionary Force, Department of Defense activities throughout the Indo-Pacific Area of Responsibility, according to the award citation.
His disciplined leadership drove a cultural shift to a systems approach for infrastructure investment that enabled the closure of $1.2 billion in long-term accumulated infrastructure risk. He also empowered 7
th Fleet operational capabilities by supporting an out-of-cycle, late-to-need weapon system fielding along with capabilities foundational to next-generation maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft, seamanship and navigation training, and state of the art autonomous warfare platforms.
“I am tremendously proud of NAVFAC Far East and the 2,100 very diverse teammates that make it successful. They literally embody the power of allies and partners. The command, at its core, is a warfighting-enabling command,” said Flood, who calls Summerville, South Carolina his hometown. “Our Fleet and joint force components were always able to meet mission because of these professionals and the world's greatest industrial base partners. They are simply amazing people supporting the most important and demanding clients in the world, and I will forever reflect fondly on my time serving alongside them.”
Tolhurst was commissioned in 2001 in the Civil Engineer Corps through the Officer Candidate School, and holds a Bachelor of Science in Materials Engineering from University of Cincinnati, as well as a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from San Diego State University. He is a registered Professional Engineer in the State of Oregon.
“I am honored to be back in the Far East and ready to continue the great momentum energized by Capt. Flood,” said Tolhurst. “There’s no greater mission than enabling the world’s most technologically-advanced fleet to deter our adversaries and secure freedom of the seas.”
NAVFAC Far East has a workforce of more than 2,000 military, U.S. civilian and host nation employees who provide a full range of facilities and engineering services to Navy, Marine Corps and other partners in Japan, Korea, Singapore, the Philippines, and the British Indian Ocean Territory (Diego Garcia).