USS Manchester (LCS 14) Conducts Change of Command

by Lt. Brinn Hefron

05 March 2026
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES

Cmdr. Shawn Callihan was relieved by Cmdr. Megan Ricker as commanding officer of the Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Manchester (LCS 14) during a change of command ceremony held onboard the USS Midway Museum in San Diego, March 5. Capt. James H. Hoey, commodore, Littoral Combat Ship Squadron One, was the presiding officer and guest speaker at the ceremony.

During Callihan’s time in command, Manchester merged into one single crew and successfully completed a 10-month maintenance availability after returning from a deployment to the U.S. 3rd and 7th Fleet areas of operations.

“You have shown great care in the crew of Manchester, leading your team throughout a 10-month major maintenance availability where Sailors can sometimes lose their sense of purpose, lack ownership in their ship or lose sight of the mission… You ensured that the crew of Manchester stayed focused and knew that every Sailor matters,” said Hoey. “Shawn, you fostered a command climate where Sailors were not simply assigned tasks, they were entrusted with purpose. That sense of being necessary to the mission, to one another, is what turns a crew into something stronger than the sum of its parts.”

During the ceremony, Callihan was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal for his superior accomplishments and will be reporting to the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations Programing Division.

Callihan, a native of Columbia, S.C., commissioned through the U.S. Navy’s Officer Candidate School in 2006. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in history from Brigham Young University, a Master of Science in geography from the University of South Carolina, and a post graduate certificate in Space Systems Operations from the Naval Postgraduate School.

Manchester is homeported in San Diego and assigned to Littoral Combat Ship Squadron One. 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.