has promised to continue where his predecessor left off.

Capt. Tim Bryan took over the command from Capt. Jim Arnold at a ceremony last Friday. He is the 14th commanding officer at the Base since it transferred from the US Air Force in 1970.

At Friday's ceremony Capt. Bryan told those serving at the Base: "I promise that I will gratefully accept and respect your unique contributions as we together define the missions of NAS Bermuda into the future.

"People must be truly our number one priority or the most comprehensive plans and the most imaginative solutions are surely doomed to failure.

"Nothing would please me more than to continue on the same path that Capt.

Arnold has started.'' A native of Washington, Capt. Bryan joined the Navy in 1968 as an airman recruit while attending the University of Maryland.

Following his graduation in 1971 he completed the Aviation Reserve Officer Candidate Programme at Pensacola, Florida, was commissioned and started flight training.

His first operational squadron as a naval aviator was in Hawaii in March, 1973. In 1978 he served a tour of duty in Iceland where he served alongside Capt. Arnold. That tour included working in Scandinavia and Northern Europe.

Serving much of his time on the US East Coast he also spent time in Alaska and in the Western Pacific. During the latter command he received a number of awards for his work.

Three years ago Capt. Bryan reported to the Office of Program Appraisal in the Pentagon, serving as Congressional Analyst to the Secretary to the Navy.

During the course of this tour he supported the Secretary to the Navy directly in preparation and personal back-up for all posture and budget hearings before Congress.

Since May last year he has been involved in a study of Navy requirements into the next century, leading a task force into stealth technology.

He brings to Bermuda his wife Patricia and son Franklin.

Capt. Bryan praised Capt. Arnold's vision and the way he handled challenges making decisions that were often unsettling and unpopular for people on the Base.

He said: "As an incoming Commanding Officer I will keep my remarks short.

No-one wants to hear from a man who does not know which side of the road to drive on.''