Captain John E. Long
assumed duties in May 2007 as Chief of Staff, Eleventh Coast Guard
District. The Eleventh Coast Guard
District encompasses the states of California, Arizona, Nevada, and
Utah; and 3.3 million square miles of coastal and offshore waters
extending 1000 nautical miles off of California, south to the
Colombian and Ecuadorian border in South America.
Captain Long’s previous assignment was Chief of Response,
Coast Guard Pacific Area, where he directed Coast Guard operations
throughout the Pacific theater while managing 18 major cutters,
three Port Security Units, six Maritime Safety Security Teams, and
the Pacific Area Tactical Law Enforcement Team. Primary missions
included Maritime Homeland Security, Maritime Homeland Defense,
Search and Rescue, Protection of Natural Resources, Counter-Drug
Enforcement, and Alien Migrant Interdiction Operations.
Captain Long previously commanded Coast Guard Air Station Houston, Texas, and Coast Sector San Diego, California, where his duties included Captain of the Port, Federal Maritime Security Coordinator, Federal On-Scene Coordinator for oil and hazardous chemical spills, and Search & Rescue Mission Coordinator.
Captain Long is a 1979 graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and a 2002 graduate of the Air War College where he earned a Master’s degree in Strategic studies. He served his initial tour as Deck Watch Officer and Weapons Officer aboard USCGC MIDGETT, was then selected for Naval Flight Training and received his "wings" in October of 1981.
Captain Long spent 25 years as a Coast Guard aviator. He served at Air Stations Houston, New Orleans, and San Francisco, and was one of the first instructor pilots in the Coast Guard's new HH-60J Training Branch at Aviation Training Center Mobile.
Military awards include three Coast Guard Meritorious Service Medals, three Coast Guard Commendation Medals and two Coast Guard Achievement Medals.