A Livingston County native has completed his command of one of the U.S. Navy’s most advanced warships.

A change of command ceremony was held Tuesday aboard the USS Zumwalt at the San Diego naval base. Capt. Andrew Carlson relieved Capt. Scott Tait and assumed duties as the third commanding officer of USS Zumwalt in a ceremony attended by distinguished visitors, family, friends and crew. Tait, a native of Brighton and a 1992 graduate of the University of Michigan, assumed command in December 2016 and led Zumwalt through many of the ship's "firsts." During his nearly two-year tour, Tait led the Navy's newest and most advanced warship through numerous certifications, evaluations, and operational testing that officials say, “brought a tremendous amount of knowledge to the Zumwalt-class program.”

During the ceremony, Tait credited his crew, along with the Zumwalt program office, waterfront maintenance and training teams, warfighting development centers, and industry partners, for overcoming many challenges and finding solutions to increase their support to the fleet. "The teamwork, resilience, technical excellence and extraordinary professionalism of this team are the foundation of everything we have accomplished,” said Tait of USS Zumwalt’s crew. “And Admiral Zumwalt’s spirit of innovation and meritocracy is alive and well here.”

The guest speaker for the change of command was Rear Adm. Dan Dwyer, commander, Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 9. Dwyer spoke of what Tait and Zumwalt’s crew accomplished over the last two years. “Your crew is making history,” said Dwyer. “By working through unique, first-in-class challenges, you set the bar high, not only for the future Zumwalt-class destroyers, but for the next generation of surface combatants.”

Tait was awarded the Legion of Merit Medal during the ceremony. Tait will retire after more than 26 years of distinguished service. Zumwalt is a guided missile destroyer of the United States Navy. She is the lead ship of the Zumwalt class and the first ship to be named for Admiral Elmo Zumwalt , who was the Chief of Naval Operations during the Vietnam War.

Pictured: Rear Adm. Daniel Dwyer, left, commander Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 9, Capt. Scott A. Tait, middle, commanding officer of the Zumwalt-class destroyer the USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000), Capt. Andrew Carlson, right, walk to a change of command ceremony for the USS Zumwalt. (U.S. Navy photo)