USS Santa Barbara (LCS 32) Conducts Change of Command

by Petty Officer 1st Class Vance Hand

22 November 2023
SAN DIEGO — Cmdr. Adam Ochs relieved Cmdr. Brian Sparks as commanding officer of the Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Santa Barbara (LCS 32) during a ceremony at Naval Base San Diego, Nov. 22.

During Sparks’ 17 months of command, Santa Barbara completed the initial shipboard hands-on training, familiarizing the crew with the ship’s equipment and systems before crew move aboard. Santa Barbara left Austal USA located in Mobile, Alabama for its maiden voyage to its homeport at Naval Station San Diego sailing through U.S. 2nd, 3rd and 4th Fleet areas of operations to include the Panama Canal.

“The amazing Santa Barbara crew took delivery of our ship in July of 2022 and hasn’t stopped moving since,” said Sparks a native of Valdosta, Georgia. “They focused in this phase of the ship’s life on testing every system, improving processes and procedures, and making a lasting impression on the impact on readiness. The crew and ship are prepared to join the fleet and embody the ship’s motto of Resilient and Determined as they take the ship into the future fight.”

Other significant events during Sparks’ time in command include multiple inaugural certification events such as damage control material assessment, light-off assessment, crew certification, electronic chart display and information system-Navy certification, combat systems ship qualification trials, final contractor trials, and post shakedown availability receiving exemplary marks in all areas.

Sparks added, “I’m honored and humbled to serve with each and every one of them, and I know that I am leaving them in the capable hands of Cmdr. Adam Ochs as the new commanding officer.”

Sparks was awarded the Meritorious Service Award for his superior accomplishments, and will report to Commander, Naval Surface Forces, U.S. Pacific Fleet for his next tour of duty.

A time-honored naval tradition, the ceremony allows the crew to formally acknowledge the passing of command from the current commanding officer to the next.

“Cmdr. Sparks’ challenged the Santa Barbara team to work together as a team and set the bar high,” said Cmdr. Johnathon Buss, Santa Barbara’s executive officer. “Under his leadership, the team accomplished many program firsts to including new capability testing with the Mk110 Bofors gun system and search and rescue davit, while safely sailing over 14,000 nautical miles. We will continue to build upon the excellent foundation to prepare Santa Barbara for her maiden deployment.”

Ochs, a native of Pesotum, Illinois, is a 2006 graduate of the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps program from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Ochs earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. While in the Navy, he earned a master’s degree in space systems operations from the Naval Postgraduate School. Cmdr. Ochs takes command of Santa Barbara after serving his executive officer tour on the cruiser USS Leyte Gulf.

Santa Barbara is homeported in San Diego as a part of Littoral Combat Ship Squadron 1 littoral combat ships are fast, optimally-manned, mission-tailored surface combatants that operate in near-shore and open-ocean environments, winning against 21st-century threats. LCS integrate with joint, combined, manned and unmanned teams to support forward-presence, maritime security, sea control, and deterrence missions around the globe.

For more news from Commander, Littoral Combat Ship Squadron One, visit https://www.surfpac.navy.mil/comlcsron1/ or follow on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/COMLCSRONONE/.