Capt. Aja Kirksey has assumed command from Capt. Arex Avanni as commander of U.S. Coast Guard Sector Honolulu.
The change was made official at a June 21 change of command ceremony presided over by Rear Adm. Michael Day, commander of the U.S. Coast Guard Fourteenth District.
Kirksey previously served as chief of the agency’s Enlisted Advancement, Panels, and Separations Branch of the Personnel Service Center. Her assignments included work as the enforcement division chief for Sector San Diego overseeing all Coast Guard law enforcement operations for the region.
She was also on the Contingency Planning staff and was assistant chief of the Incident Management Division at Sector San Francisco. In addition, she was also deputy operations section chief that responded to the 2007 Cosco Busan oil spill in the San Francisco Bay, overseeing more than 1,500 response personnel and 40 surface assets, according to USCG.
Kirkey has a master’s degree in quality systems management from the National Graduate School at New England Institute of Business. In 2001, she graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy with a Bachelor of Science degree in marine environmental sciences.
