Command team of Maritime Forces Pacific

Rear-Admiral (RAdm) David Patchell is a native of Ottawa, Ontario, and a 1998 graduate of the Royal Military College of Canada, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Defence Studies. He is also a graduate of the Royal College of Defence Studies in London, UK, where he earned a Postgraduate Certificate in Security and Strategy from King’s College London.

RAdm Patchell began his naval career in 1993 as an Ordinary Seaman with HMCS Carleton. Trained as a surface warfare officer, his early operational sea tours with the Pacific Fleet included service aboard HMCS Huron, HMCS Algonquin, and HMCS Vancouver, where he deployed as an Air Controller during Operation APOLLO. With the Atlantic Fleet, he served as Operations Officer on board HMCS Halifax and HMCS St. John's, and with Sea Training. He later served as Executive Officer of HMCS Athabaskan and subsequently HMCS Iroquois. He commanded HMCS Toronto, leading a deployment to the Middle East from which the ship’s company was awarded the U.S. Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation.

His shore tours have included Squadron Commander at the Royal Military College, Chief of Staff to the Base Commander, CFB Halifax, and Deputy Director of Naval Force Readiness in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Upon promotion to Captain(N), he was appointed Director Naval Strategic Management at National Defence Headquarters in Ottawa. Following his studies in London, he was promoted to Commodore and returned to the Naval Staff as Director General Naval Strategic Readiness.

He was subsequently promoted to Rear-Admiral in 2022 and appointed as Vice-Commander of the U.S. Second Fleet in Norfolk, Virginia. In August 2025, RAdm Patchell assumed command of Maritime Forces Pacific and Joint Task Force Pacific.

Chief Petty Officer 1st Class (CPO1) Jonathon Sorensen enrolled in the Naval Reserves as a Boatswain at HMCS Hunter in 1999 before transferring to the Regular Force as a Hull Technician in 2002.

Throughout his naval career, he has served at sea in HMC Ships Summerside, Shawinigan, Algonquin, Winnipeg, and Vancouver, participating in numerous domestic and international operations, including RIMPAC, Operations PODIUM, CARIBBE, PROJECTION, and NEON. As Hull Systems Supervisor and later Marine Systems Engineering Chief in HMCS Vancouver, he played a key role in the ship's return to operational service following its mid-life modernization and subsequent deployment cycle.

Ashore, CPO1 Sorensen has held several key appointments, including Damage Control Instructor at Fleet School Pacific, Hull Systems Services Technician at Fleet Maintenance Facility Cape Breton, Subsidized Training Coordinator at Naval Training Group Headquarters, and Marine Technician Career Manager at Director Military Careers in Ottawa.

Promoted to Chief Petty Officer 1st Class in January 2022, he was appointed Coxswain of HMCS Vancouver, leading the ship's company through an intensive readiness and deployment period in support of Canadian and international operations. In 2024, he served as the Combined Force Maritime Component Command Chief Petty Officer for RIMPAC. From 2023 to 2025, he served as the Fleet Maintenance Facility Cape Breton Chief Petty Officer.

In May 2025, he assumed his current appointment as Formation Chief for Maritime Forces Pacific and Joint Task Force Pacific.

CPO1 Sorensen is a graduate of Keystone Course 26-2 at the U.S. National Defense University.

He is the proud father to his daughter, Avery, and enjoys hockey, skiing, and other outdoor pursuits.

Commodore Brown enrolled in the Canadian Armed Forces Regular Officer Training Program in 1997 and graduated from the Royal Military College of Canada in 2001. He joined the East Coast fleet of the Royal Canadian Navy the same year specializing in Above Water Warfare.

Commodore Brown has alternated between operational and force development posts throughout his career. Previous command appointments include the Canadian Forces Maritime Warfare Centre, HMC Ships Fredericton, Protecteur, and Edmonton. His staff posts include managing operational requirements for the Halifax-class modernization and River-class destroyer projects, and as the Director of Naval Requirements in Naval Staff Headquarters.

Commodore Brown holds a bachelor's degree in civil engineering and a master's degree in defence studies from the Royal Military College of Canada. He also holds a Post Graduate Certificate in Security and Strategy for Global Leaders from King’s College London which he earned while completing the Global Strategy Program at the United Kingdom’s Royal College of Defence Studies.

Commodore Brown has commanded Canadian Fleet Pacific since May 2026.

A first generation Canadian, CPO1 Armand Reelick was born in Burnaby B.C. to his Dutch parents. He grew up mostly in BC except for a few short years in Toronto in the early 90’s before his family saw the light and moved back to B.C. this time to 100 Mile House in the Caribou Region. In 100 Mile CPO1 Reelick was an Army Cadet until he graduated from high school. At which time he joined the CAF as a Canadian Ranger as a member of 100 Mile House Patrol where he remained active member until he transferred to the Regular Force RCN as a Boatswain in 2000. Early in his career he sailed onboard HMCS Winnipeg, Protecteur, Ottawa, and Algonquin. He deployed to the Persian Gulf on three occasions, as well as Australia, Asia and South America. After a short stint ashore as a QL5 instructor, he was promoted to PO1 and appointed as the Coxswain of HMCS Oriole in 2013, where he remained for two and a half years sailing all over the Pacific Northwest. Promoted to CPO2 and posted to HMCS Calgary as the Chief Boatswains Mate in early 2016, during which the ship participated in RIMPAC and various other exercises.

After completing his CBM tour he was selected to be the Deputy Base Chief Petty Officer at CFB Esquimalt in the summer of 2017. Responsible variety of tasks, but most of his time was spent planning and executing ceremonial guards and commemorative parades, such as the Opening of the Provincial Legislature and overseeing all Remembrance Day events on Southern Vancouver Island. In 2018 Nijmegen Marches in the Netherlands with the MARPAC team which is a career highlights and he is still looking for additional opportunity to take on the challenge again.

In 2020 he embarked on the yearlong French Language Training online and after completion, he was posted to Sea Training Pacific as the CBM, where he remained until he was promoted to his current rank. CPO1 Reelick was appointed Coxswain of HMCS Calgary in March 2022, and remained there until January 2024 during which time he took the ship to sea for a short period and ramped it down for a major Docking Work Period. He visited the City of Calgary on occasion and really enjoyed his two visits flipping pancakes at Stampede. Immediately after leaving HMCS Calgary, he assumed the duties of Coxswain onboard HMCS Ottawa, where he deployed on Operation Horizon and Operation Neon 24-03 returning home in March of 2025, prior to moving to Canadian Fleet Pacific.

He lives with his wife Elicia in Colwood. They enjoy spending time at their cabin out past Sooke and enjoy travelling, especially to the Netherlands to visit family. CPO1 Reelick is an avid hockey player in the base intersection league and in the summers, he can be found usually frustrated, on a local golf course or taking in PFC soccer matches with Elicia.

Capt(N) Doug Layton was born in Montreal, Quebec, and raised in Mississauga, Ontario. He joined the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) in 2002 as a Naval Warfare Officer (NWO). Upon achieving his initial naval officer qualification in HMCS Calgary, he proceeded onto the Fleet Navigating Officer course and was later employed as the Navigating Officer in HMC Ships Athabaskan and Iroquois, deploying in 2008 to the Arabian Gulf region with Combined Task Force 150. In January 2010, he deployed onboard HMCS Halifax in support of OP HESTIA, the CAF response to the earthquakes in Haiti. Later in 2010 and 2011, he completed the Operations Room Officer and Command Development courses.

Upon completion of these courses, Capt(N) Layton joined HMCS Iroquois as the Operations Officer and subsequently HMCS Charlottetown as the Combat Officer, deploying in 2012 to the Mediterranean and Arabian Seas for OP METRIC and OP ARTEMIS. Following his return, he was posted to Sea Training (Atlantic) as Weapons Officer.

In 2015, Capt(N) Layton was appointed Executive Officer in HMCS Ville de Quebec which included two Great Lakes Deployments and in 2021, he was appointed Commanding Officer of HMCS Winnipeg where his crew conducted a deployment to the Indo Asia Pacific Region for Operations NEON and PROJECTION. Capt(N) Layton has earned a Master’s in Defence Studies from the Canadian Forces College and a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the United States Naval War College. His staff and headquarters positions have included tours with the Chief of Force Development and Chief of Naval Staff and as Deputy Commander and Chief of Staff at Joint Task Force (North). He was appointed Commander of Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt in July 2026.

Chief Petty Officer 1st Class (CPO1) Susan ‘Sue’ Frisby was born and raised in Corner Brook, NL. She joined the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) at the age of 18 in January 1998, as a Tactical Acoustic Sonar Operator. She completed her Basic Training in Saint-Jean, QC and her initial Operator training in Victoria, BC, before being posted to her first ship, His Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Huron, in the fall of 1998.

CPO1 Frisby has served in various roles both ashore and at sea. A sailor first, she has spent much of her career onboard ships, serving on both Iroquois-Class destroyers (HMCS Huron and Algonquin) and Halifax-class frigates (HMC Ships Ottawa, Calgary, Vancouver, Regina, and Winnipeg).

In 2002, she sailed onboard HMCS Ottawa in support of anti-terrorism operations in the Persian Gulf, during Operation APOLLO. Maintaining an impressive level of fitness, she has been a ship’s diver and boarding party team member. When not posted to a ship, she has proven her ability as both an Instructor at the Canadian Forces Fleet School (CFFS) and an Analyst at the Acoustic Data Analysis Centre (ADAC).

Throughout her career CPO1 Frisby has continually challenged herself by taking on increasingly difficult positions.  In June 2018 she was promoted to CPO2, which saw her head back to HMCS Ottawa for a third time as the Operations Chief, a role she considers one of the highlights of her career.

In 2019, she left the ship and joined the CFB Esquimalt Base Command Team as Deputy Base Chief Petty Officer, a challenging role especially during the continuous adjustments of public health orders and restrictions during the pandemic.

CPO1 Frisby was promoted to her current rank in May 2021 and appointed to the position as the Unit Chief Petty Officer of MARPAC HQ in June. Her time there was short, as in February 2022 she achieved a milestone every naval chief strives for by becoming the Coxswain of a warship, HMCS Winnipeg. That posting saw her travel the world, once again, as Winnipeg deployed overseas to the Indo-Pacific in support of Operation PROJECTION where she supported the objectives of the Government of Canada and the 250 personnel, she had the pleasure of calling family for six months. In July of 2023, she was appointed to her current position of Base Chief CFB Esquimalt.

CPO1 Frisby is actively supported by her husband Aaron, daughter Mackenzie and son Jaxson.  Together they enjoy spending time as a family, taking full advantage of the West Coast Lifestyle through various outdoor activities.