Adm. John Aquilino tapped to be next leader of US Indo-Pacific Command

The White House has nominated Adm. John “Lung” Aquilino to serve as the next leader of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command , the Pentagon announced Thursday.

A career aviator, Aquilino is currently the commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet and previously commanded U.S. 5th Fleet before taking the PACFLEET helm in 2018.

His appointment to lead the combatant command is subject to Senate approval.

He would replace Adm. Phil Davidson , who assumed command of INDO-PACOM in 2018, when the joint force’s name was changed from U.S. Pacific Command.

If confirmed, Aquilino would take charge of a combatant command with a lot on its plate.

INDO-PACOM oversees U.S. forces throughout Asia and into the Indian Ocean, a region where the Navy plans to stand up a new command, U.S. 1st Fleet , to help counter Chinese influence and aspirations at the nexus of the Indian and Pacific oceans.

The Wall Street Journal first reported the news of Aquilino’s expected nomination on Monday.

Geoff is the managing editor of Military Times, but he still loves writing stories. He covered Iraq and Afghanistan extensively and was a reporter at the Chicago Tribune. He welcomes any and all kinds of tips at geoffz@militarytimes.com.

白宫已提名约翰·“隆”·阿奎利诺海军上将担任美国印太司令部下一任司令，五角大楼周四宣布了这一消息。

阿奎利诺是一名职业飞行员，目前担任美国太平洋舰队司令，此前曾担任美国第五舰队司令，于 2018 年执掌太平洋舰队。

他的作战司令部司令任命须经参议院批准。

他将接替菲尔·戴维森海军上将，后者于 2018 年接管印太司令部，当时该联合部队的名称由美国太平洋司令部更改为印太司令部。

如果任命得到确认，阿奎利诺将接管一个任务繁重的作战司令部。

印度-太平洋司令部负责监督美国在整个亚洲和印度洋的部队，美国海军计划在该地区建立一个新的司令部——美国第一舰队，以帮助对抗中国在印度洋和太平洋交汇处的影响力和野心。

《华尔街日报》周一率先报道了阿奎利诺有望获得提名的消息。

杰夫是《军事时报》的执行主编，但他仍然热爱写作。他曾深入报道伊拉克和阿富汗战争，也曾在《芝加哥论坛报》担任记者。欢迎大家通过 geoffz@militarytimes.com 向他提供各种新闻线索。