Former isle resident named head of U.S. Central Command special ops

Maj. Gen. Michael K. Nagata, a former Pearl City resident, has been selected to become the next commander of the Special Operations Command Central at the U.S. Central Command at MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., the Army has announced.

Nagata, who was promoted to two stars in January 2012, is currently deputy director for special operations on the Joint Staff at the Pentagon.

Nagata has deployed to combat missions in Somalia, the Balkans and Iraq.

He will command special operations forces across Central Command, stretching from the Middle East to Paki­stan, the Army said Jan. 22.

In a Foreign Policy article in January, retired Lt. Gen. Frank Kearney, who held the post Nagata is about to step into, said, "Operating from the shadows in support of the fight against al-Qaida and affiliates’ senior leaders, Gen. Nagata has developed inter-agency, country, team and U.S. embassy relationships throughout CENTCOM and the Horn of Africa."

Kearney called Nagata an "unassuming and affable leader with a lethal intellect" whose in-depth experience and connections make him a "perfect choice" for the job.

Born in Alexandria, Va., into an Army family, he spent his early childhood in Pearl City.

Nagata was commissioned as an infantry officer in 1982. In 1984 he joined Army Special Forces and served in 2nd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), until 1987.

Nagata assumed command of 1st Battalion, 1st Special Warfare Training Group, at Fort Bragg, N.C., in 1999, where he was responsible for the Special Forces Qualification Course. From 2000 to 2002 he served as a squadron commander in a special mission unit. After graduating from the National War College, he served in the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence until 2005. He then assumed command of a special mission unit and served there until 2008.

In 2009 Nagata served within the intelligence community as a deputy director for counterterrorism. From 2009 to 2011 he deployed to Islamabad, Paki­stan, where he served as deputy chief of the Office of the Defense Representative to Paki­stan.

He and wife Barbara have five children.