LIHU'E, Kaua'i — Capt. Mark Darrah relieved Capt. Jeff Connelly as commanding officer of the Pacific Missile Range Facility yesterday during a change-of-command ceremony at the installation's operations hangar.

Adm. Gary Roughead, commander of the Pacific Fleet, praised Connelly, who is winding up a 30-year naval career.

"Without question, Capt. Connelly significantly enhanced the ability of this facility to successfully achieve national defense mission objectives by improving morale, tightening oversight, implementing controls, enhancing business processes and managing risk," Roughead said.

Darrah previously was deputy program manager for the EA-18G, the Navy's new electronic jamming aircraft.