[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 108 (Wednesday, July 18, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1275-E1276]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  HONORING CAPTAIN FREDERICK E. GAGHAN

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. SILVESTRE REYES

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 18, 2012

  Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Captain Fredrick E. 
Gaghan of the Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization, 
JIEDDO, who will retire in November after 25 years of service.
  Captain Gaghan has had a long and distinguished career in the United 
States Navy. Upon graduation from Hartwick College in 1987, he enlisted 
in the Navy as part of the Special Operations Officer Program and was 
subsequently commissioned in 1988. As a young naval officer, Captain 
Gaghan served onboard USS Opportune, ARS 41, as a qualified Surface 
Warfare Officer. Following his initial sea assignment, he became an 
Explosive Ordnance Disposal, EOD, officer and was first assigned to EOD 
Mobile Unit NINE. Throughout his career, Captain Gaghan has displayed 
exceptional professionalism and technical proficiency. As such, he was 
identified by his seniors as a leader who could be entrusted with 
command. He served as the Commanding Officer of EOD Mobile Unit FOUR as 
well as Commander, Task Group 56.1 in Bahrain. At

[[Page E1276]]

the Joint CREW Program Office, PMS-408, he served as the Director, Test 
and Evaluation and Principle Assistant Program Manager before arriving 
at JIEDDO.
  Today, one of the greatest threats faced by our service men and women 
is the improvised explosive device, TED. Our troops face an adaptive 
enemy with little regard for the sanctity of human life. As a Member of 
the House Armed Services Committee, I work closely with JIEDDO to help 
provide the necessary capabilities to protect our service men and women 
from the TED threat. JIEDDO has made significant strides to combat 
those dangers by not only reducing the effectiveness of IED attacks 
themselves, but also by targeting and eliminating the enemy networks 
that seek to use these devices to harm our troops.
  Captain Gaghan has contributed greatly to protecting the lives of our 
troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. At JIEDDO, he was initially responsible 
for leading all Counter-TED research and development efforts in support 
of our Combatant Commanders urgent needs. In this role, he developed 
and delivered numerous capabilitie3 that have enabled our forces to 
more effectively detect IEDs, jam radio-controlled initiators and 
identify Home Made Explosive precursors. Lieutenant General Michael 
Barbero, Director ofJIEDDO, quickly recognized Captain Gaghan's strong 
leadership abilities and selected him to fill two key positions in the 
past year: JIEDDO's Chief of Staff and Acting Deputy Director of Rapid 
Acquisition and Technology. Throughout his tenure at JIEDDO, Captain 
Gaghan's tireless efforts and great dedication helped JIEDDO achieve 
its mission of rapidly providing Counter-IED capabilities in support of 
the warfighter to defeat the IED as a weapon of strategic influence.
  I am proud to share in the celebration of Captain Gaghan's military 
career, and I join his colleagues in honoring his extraordinary 
leadership at JIEDDO and his distinguished military service.

                          ____________________