Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Benjamin Davella | Rear Admiral Todd E. Whalen (left) relieves Rear Adm. Daniel P. Martin (center) as the...... read more read more
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Naval Safety Command (NAVSAFECOM) held a change of command ceremony at the Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training Unit Oceana Ceremonial Hangar on Sept. 11, where Rear Admiral Todd E. Whalen relieved Rear Adm. Dan “Dino” Martin as the 60th commander of the Navy’s safety organization. Retired Vice Admiral DeWolfe Miller III delivered remarks as the keynote speaker.
Martin, a career F/A-18 Hornet pilot, assumed command of NAVSAFECOM in August 2024.
“As I stand here before you, I am proud of the achievements that the men and women of the Naval Safety Command have made over the past two years,” Martin said. “Two years ago, I said, ‘Self-inflicted wounds that pull player off the field are just that: self-inflicted. These incidents restrict our ability to remain forward, while deployed.’ I made a commitment then that I would do my very best to better prepare the fleet to push forward and ‘play that away game’ so they can succeed operationally when it matters most.”
NAVSAFECOM is tasked to identify leading indicators of risks and hazards to empower our warfighters to embrace a proactive culture of risk identification and management to achieve zero preventable mishaps and to effectively manage the consequences of mishaps to minimize damage.
“We have made tremendous strides in maturing the Risk Management Information safety reporting platform, increasing the number of safety program modules each year and making it easier to input data and more efficient for our users across the enterprise,” said Martin. “Our data analytics teams continue to support the fleet through development of risk forecasting models across the naval enterprise, delivering a tool that enables our commanders to make informed decisions when and where it matters. Our assessment teams are out on any given week, evaluating how naval organizations identify, communicate, and account for operational risk. When a mishap occurs, our investigators are ready to quickly respond and assist during the safety investigation process.”
Martin noted over the past year the command’s safety professionals have taken a pragmatic approach aimed at helping develop a risk control system that integrates existing safety and risk management programs into a single, unified framework, reducing stovepipes and improving overall risk visibility across the Navy.
“This new framework will ultimately replace the current Safety Management System and reinforces the adoption of a single “risk” lexicon that replaces operational risk management,” he said.
“Ultimately, our enduring objective is to ensure our Sailors and Marines remain on the field ready to face any challenge head-on, that personnel at all levels are empowered to identify and communicate hazards, embrace a strong “speak-up” culture and receive clear guidance to make more risk informed decisions both on and off duty,” he said.
Whalen, a naval nuclear officer, brings a wealth of fleet experience to the command. In addition to several assignments ashore, he has completed operational tours on multiple surface ships at sea.
In his first flag officer assignment, Whalen served as the 72nd President of the Board of Inspection and Survey. Most recently, Whalen served as Commander, Carrier Strike Group Three.
“I’m honored to take command of Naval Safety Command, and I look forward to getting after it with this team of professionals to enable warfighting readiness and support our Sailors and Marines in the fleet,” said Whalen.
NAVSAFECOM serves as the naval enterprise lead for non-nuclear safety standards, expertise and oversight of the Navy and Marine Corps Safety Management System. The command’s mission is to preserve warfighting capability and enhance combat lethality and readiness by working with its stakeholders to identify, mitigate or eliminate hazards to reduce unnecessary risk to people and resources.
| Date Taken: | 09.11.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 09.11.2026 12:05 |
| Story ID: | 574386 |
| Location: | VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 37 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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