CAMP HANSEN, Okinawa, Japan -- Col. Romin Dasmalchi assumed command of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit from the interim commanding officer, Lt. Col. G. Troy Roesti, in an Assumption of Command ceremony here, June 9.
The ceremony was held at the Camp Hansen House of Pain gymnasium in front of friends and fellow Marines, including Lt. Gen. John Wissler, commanding general of III Marine Expeditionary Force and commander of Marine Corps Forces Japan.
Col. Dasmalchi was commissioned in 1992 and earned his wings two years later as a CH-46 Sea Knight pilot. His first assignment was with then-Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 265 in Okinawa, Japan where he deployed with the 31st MEU. Following that assignment and attendance to the Amphibious Warfare School, Dasmalchi attached to HMM-365 fulfilling various billets and deployed to both Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. In 2009, Dasmalchi commanded Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 266 which became the aviation combat element for the 26th MEU, where he deployed again for OIF and supported Operations Odyssey Dawn and Unified Protector in Libya. He next attended the Naval War College in Rhode Island in 2012 before serving his most recent assignment as a branch chief at U.S. Northern Command in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
“I’m humbled and excited by the opportunity to command a MEU, better yet the only one that stays ready to deploy every day,” said Dasmalchi, a native of Mansfield, Missouri. “This isn’t an obligation to take lightly, especially with the challenges of an operational command coupled with the operational tempo we have and the area of responsibility we’re in, but I’m very excited to lead these Marines and seeing them in action.”
Roesti resumed his duties as the executive officer for the 31st MEU following the ceremony.
The 31st MEU is the force of choice for the Asia-Pacific region and is the only continuously forward-deployed MEU.