The US embassy has celebrated Kelechi Ndukwe, the first Nigerian-American to command a US missile destroyer.
On April 1, Ndukwe took over as the commanding officer of USS Halsey (DDG-97), an Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer.
The Nigerian-American had been serving as the second-in command of the ship to De Vere J. Crooks who had been the commander since November 2019.
Celebrating the achievement, the US mission in Nigeria, in a statement via a tweet, congratulated Ndukwe for the new role.
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“Kelechi Ndukwe is commander of a U.S. Navy Guided Missile Destroyer,” the embassy said.
“He graduated from Notre Dame and the U.S. Naval War College.
“Kelechi also served at the Pentagon in Washington DC.
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“He received the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, and the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal.”
“Ndukwe is the first Nigerian-American captain of a Navy ship.”
Kudos to Kelechi Ndukwe on his new role as commander of a U.S. Navy Guided Missile Destroyer. The University of Notre Dame and the U.S. Naval War College alumnus becomes the first Nigerian-American captain of a U.S. Navy ship. Congratulations! pic.twitter.com/SCoaIVBlWd
— U.S. Mission Nigeria (@USinNigeria) April 8, 2021
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TheCable did a profile of Ndukwe from how he started his 18-year career in the US navy which began with him working as an auxiliary officer in 2003 — a year after obtaining a master’s degree in national security and strategy studies from the US Naval War College. You can read it here.
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