Captain Zachary “Stanger” Stang
Commander
Task Force 72 / Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing
Captain Stang is a native of Little Rock, Arkansas. He graduated from the University of Arkansas, Little Rock in 1999 with a Bachelor of Arts in History and earned his Naval Flight Officer wings in 2001.
He most recently served as the Deputy Commander of Task Force FIVE SEVEN (CTF-57) in Manama, Bahrain. His previous operational assignments include serving as the Commanding Officer of Patrol Squadron EIGHT (VP-8) in Jacksonville, FL, the Chief of Operations for CTF-57, as a Department Head for Patrol Squadron FOUR SEVEN (VP-47) in Kaneohe, HI, as the Operations Department Administration Officer onboard USS Harry S Truman (CVN 75) homeported in Norfolk, VA, and as a Junior Officer with Patrol Squadron TEN (VP-10) in Brunswick, ME. Captain Stang’s first shore tour was as a Fleet Replacement Squadron instructor with Patrol Squadron THREE ZERO (VP-30) in Jacksonville, FL. He attended Naval War College in Newport, RI, where he graduated with distinction, earning a Master of Arts in Strategic Studies and Foreign Affairs. He also graduated from National War College in Washington, DC, earning a Master of Science in Strategic Studies and Foreign Affairs.
He has accumulated more than three thousand hours in the P-3C Orion and P-8A Poseidon and completed eight overseas deployments in support of numerous named and contingency operations. He is slated to become the next Commodore of Task Force SEVEN TWO (CTF-72) in Atsugi, Japan.