Vice Adm. D. Brian Peterman will assume command of the Coast Guard Atlantic Area during a Change of Command ceremony at 10 a.m. May 9, at the Integrated Support Command, Portsmouth, Va.
Vice Adm. Peterman will relieve Vice Adm. Vivien S. Crea, who assumed command of Atlantic Area July 16, 2004. She has been appointed to Vice Commandant, the Coast Guard’s second-in-command position, and will transfer to Coast Guard Headquarters, Washington, D.C.
As Commander, Atlantic Area, Vice Adm. Peterman will be responsible for all Coast Guard activities within the eastern half of the world ranging from the Rocky Mountains to the
Arabian Gulf and spanning five Coast Guard Districts, 42 states and over 14 million square miles, and serving with more than 30,300 military and civilians, and almost 30,000 auxiliarists. He also will serve concurrently as Commander, Coast Guard Defense Force East.
A native of Malvern, Pa., Vice Adm. Peterman received a bachelor’s degree from West Chester University in 1972 and entered the Coast Guard through the Officer Candidate program.
Vice Adm. Peterman will be reporting from his recent assignment as the Commander of both the Seventh Coast Guard District and Maritime Homeland Defense District Seven, and Director, Homeland Security Task Force Southeast where he oversaw all Coast Guard operations in the southeastern United States, from the North Carolina-South Carolina border to Florida, with the exception of the panhandle, and throughout the Caribbean. He came to the Seventh District from the White House where he served for two-and-a-half years as the Special Assistant to the President for Borders and Transportation Security on the Homeland Security Council staff. This was his second assignment to the White House, having previously served as the Director in the Defense Policy and Arms Control Directorate of the National Security Council from 1988 to 2000.