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News | June 27, 2018

Logistics center welcomes new leader, Skubic gains second star

DLA Land and Maritime Public Affairs

Defense Logistics Agency Land and Maritime and the Defense Supply Center Columbus bid farewell to Navy Rear Adm. Michelle Skubic and welcomed Rear Adm. John Palmer during a change of command ceremony June 27 on base.

Skubic will become the 48th Chief of the Navy’s Supply Corps and take command of Naval Supply Systems Command headquartered in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania.

DLA Director Army Lt. Gen. Darrell K. Williams, who presided over the ceremony, began by promoting Skubic to the rank of rear admiral (upper half) following her successful 21-month tenure at DSCC’s helm. Skubic joins the less than 70 active duty officers across the Navy’s 324,000-strong force currently serving at this rank.

“Since taking command of Land and Maritime in 2016, Michelle has proven to be an exceptional leader who epitomizes strong support to our warfighters,” Williams said, commending Skubic on her efforts and impact to the organization.

The official change of command commenced immediately following the promotion ceremony, with Williams turning over the organization’s flag to its new leader, saying Palmer is the right person at the right time to lead DLA Land and Maritime.

“You bring a sterling reputation of leadership, unsurpassed mission support and taking care of people – all of the same characteristics used to describe and define DLA Land and Maritime and DSCC,” the DLA Director said.

Palmer is a naval officer with previous operational and shore command experience. He joins DSCC from Joint Base Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, where he previously served as the director of logistics, fleet supply and ordnance for U.S. Pacific Fleet.

Palmer is no stranger to DLA – having served two previous DLA tours adding up to nearly six years with the agency. He served in several capacities at DLA Aviation for several years, and later in command of Defense Distribution Mapping Activity and Defense Distribution Depot Richmond in Virginia.

Other assignments include positions with Naval Supply Systems Command, Navy Personnel Command and Naval Air Systems Command, as well as assignments aboard the USS Harry S. Truman and USS George Washington among others.

“I pledge to you that we’ll continue the great work and uphold Land and Maritime standards that you’ve both established and maintained,” said Palmer, addressing Skubic and Williams.

“In that spirit, I would say that our goal every day can be nothing less than to have our warfighters ready to fight the next war. I look forward to measuring ourselves against these challenges together as a team,” he concluded.


For more than 100 years, the Defense Supply Center Columbus has been a vital logistics center, providing weapons system and platform support to U.S. forces and other federal agencies across the globe. As DSCC’s largest tenant, Defense Logistics Agency Land and Maritime maintains command oversight of the installation. DLA Land and Maritime manages more than 2 million unique inventory parts to support several thousand multiservice weapons systems and the Warfighters who rely on them. Find more news and information at www.dla.mil/landandmaritime