Task Force Essayons changes commanders during ceremony in Iraq

Published Feb. 19, 2019
Updated: Feb. 19, 2019
Task Force Essayons changes commanders during ceremony in Iraq

Col. Clete Goetz (holding flag) prepares to relinquish command of Task Force Essayons to USACE Transatlantic Division Commander Col. Mark Quander (right) during a Change of Command ceremony that took place Feb. 19, 2019, at Camp Taji, Iraq. Goetz departed TFE for a follow-on assignment as brigade commander for the 36th Engineer Brigade at Fort Hood, Texas.

Task Force Essayons changes commanders during ceremony in Iraq

Col. James Riely accepts command of Task Force Essayons from Transatlantic Division Commander Col. Mark Quander during a ceremony that took place Feb. 19, 2019, at Camp Taji, Iraq. Riely comes to TFE from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where he served as the deputy director of the Department of Military Instruction.

Task Force Essayons changes commanders during ceremony in Iraq

A large crowd watches the USACE Transatlantic Division’s Task Force Essayons Change of Command ceremony that took place Feb. 19, 2019, at Camp Taji, Iraq. During the event, Col. Clete Goetz relinquished command of TFE to Col. James Riley. The event was presided over by TAD Commander Col. Mark Quander.

Task Force Essayons changes commanders during ceremony in Iraq

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Transatlantic Division Commander Col. Mark Quander gives remarks during the Task Force Essayons Change of Command ceremony that took place Feb. 19, 2019, at Camp Taji, Iraq. During the event, Col. Clete Goetz relinquished command of TFE to Col. James Riley.

Task Force Essayons changes commanders during ceremony in Iraq

Andy Borden, the Task Force Essayons Deputy for Programs and Project Management, and Col. James Riley, the newly designated TFE commander, cut the cake following Riely’s Change of Command ceremony that took place Feb. 19, 2019, at Camp Taji, Iraq. The event was presided over by TAD Commander Col. Mark Quander.

USACE Transatlantic Division’s Task Force Essayons changed leaders during a ceremony that took place Feb. 19, 2019, at Camp Taji, Iraq.

TAD Commander Col. Mark Quander presided over the event, which saw Col. Clete Goetz relinquish command to Col. James Riely.

Goetz departed TFE for a follow-on assignment as brigade commander for the 36th Engineer Brigade at Fort Hood, Texas. Riely comes to TFE from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where he served as the deputy director of the Department of Military Instruction.


The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Transatlantic Division serves as USACE’s tip of the spear in one of the most dynamic construction environments in the world, STRENGTHENING PARTNERSHIPS, BUILDING CAPACITY, and ENHANCING SECURITY for our nation, allies, and partners. 

We SAFELY deliver agile, responsive, and innovative, design, construction, engineering and contingency solutions in support of U.S. Central Command, U.S. Special Operations Command and other global partners to advance national security interests.

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