Adm. Karl Thomas officially took over this week at Fleet Forces Command based in Norfolk after being confirmed by the Senate in October.
Once called the Atlantic Fleet, Fleet Forces is one of the largest major commands in the Navy, directly in charge of roughly half the Navy’s ships. Thomas takes over at a time when Norfolk has had to come up with most of the Navy ships involved in a widening operation in the Caribbean.
After spending 9 months under intense fire in the Red Sea in 2024, the destroyer USS Gravely has been deployed a total of more than 7 months this year, as the build-up around Venezuela intensifies. The ship returned in June after spending three months in the Gulf and Caribbean in a more traditional drug interdiction mission with the Coast Guard, where the Coast Guard arrested suspected traffickers.
USS Gravely set sail again from Norfolk in August, as part of a build up of forces around Venezuela, when the operation shifted dramatically. The US has since destroyed 21 boats and killed at least 80 people, which the administration has claimed, without providing evidence, were carrying drugs bound for the United States.
Thomas replaced Adm. Daryl Caudle who became Chief of Naval Operations. Caudle presided over the change of command ceremony on board the USS Truman Monday.
“Admiral Thomas brings exceptional leadership experience and strategic vision to U.S. Fleet Forces Command at a critical time for our Navy,” Caudle said. “I have complete confidence in his ability to guide Fleet Forces Command as we navigate an increasingly complex global security environment and ensure our sailors are trained, equipped and ready to defend our nation’s interests worldwide.”
Fleet Forces is also in charge of maintenance and manning for the entire fleet at a time when the Navy faces serious backlogs. In 2024, the Government Accountability Office found that half of the Navy’s amphibious landing ships were in poor condition, which threatened the Marines’ ability to deploy. Adding to the maintenance crunch, the Navy plans to extend the service life of 12 Arleigh Burke destroyers as the Navy tries to compensate for the slow pace of new shipbuilding.
Prior to becoming the head of Fleet Forces, Thomas was deputy chief of naval operations for information warfare, where he was in charge of rolling out new AI systems for the fleet. New systems allow ships and commands to integrate multiple types of information, from satellite images to social media posts. These Maritime Operations Centers were first stood up in the Pacific Fleet but are set to be put in place at commands around the globe, including Norfolk.
