Robert Frederick Willard[1] is a retired United States Navy admiral who last served as the 22nd Commander, U.S. Pacific Command from October 19, 2009[2] to March 9, 2012. He previously served as Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet from May 8, 2007, to September 25, 2009.[3][4] Prior to that, he served as the 34th Vice Chief of Naval Operations from March 18, 2005, to April 2007. On March 9, 2012, Admiral Willard retired from the Navy after 39 years of service. On May 9, 2012, he was elected president and chief executive officer of the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations, succeeding retired Navy admiral James O. Ellis Jr.
Robert F. Willard | |
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| Born | December 5, 1950 Bell, California, U.S. |
| Service | United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1973–2012 |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Commands | U.S. Pacific Command U.S. Pacific Fleet U.S. Seventh Fleet Carrier Strike Group 5 USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) USS Tripoli (LPH-10) VF-51 Screaming Eagles |
| Awards | Defense Distinguished Service Medal Navy Distinguished Service Medal (3) Legion of Merit (4) Meritorious Service Medal (3) Navy Commendation Medal (4) |
Navy career
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Willard is a Los Angeles native. In 1969, he graduated from East Longmeadow High School[citation needed] in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts, and received a Bachelor of Science degree from the United States Naval Academy in 1973. He also holds a Master of Science degree in engineering management from Old Dominion University and was a fellow at MIT Seminar XXI.
An F-14 naval aviator, Willard served consecutively in Fighter Squadron 24 (VF-24), Fighter Squadron 124 (VF-124), and Fighter Squadron 2 (VF-2) at NAS Miramar, deploying aboard USS Constellation (CV-64), USS Ranger (CV-61), and USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63). He then joined Navy Fighter Weapons School Top Gun as Operations Officer and Executive Officer, as well as aerial coordinator for the Paramount film Top Gun.
In 1987, Willard reported to Fighter Squadron 51 (VF-51), where he served as executive officer and commanding officer of the Screaming Eagles, embarked in USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70). He subsequently attended Navy Nuclear Power Training before rejoining Carl Vinson as Executive Officer. Willard then commanded the flagships USS Tripoli (LPH-10) and USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) in various operations including Somalia, and the Persian Gulf.
As a flag officer, Willard has served on the Joint Staff as Deputy Director for Operations (Current Readiness and Capabilities); Commander. In 1998–1999, he attended MIT Seminar XXI.[5] He also served on Carrier Group Five embarked in USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63); Deputy and Chief of Staff, Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; Commander, Seventh Fleet, embarked in USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19) in Yokosuka, Japan; and Director for Force Structure, Resources and Assessment (DJ8) on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. From March 2005 to April 2007, Willard was the 34th Vice Chief of Naval Operations. After, he was the commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet from May 8, 2007, until September 25, 2009, when he was relieved by Admiral Patrick M. Walsh. As the Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, he was responsible for the world's largest fleet command, encompassing 100,000,000 square miles (260,000,000 km2) and more than 170 ships and submarines, 1,300 aircraft, and 122,000 Sailors, Reservists and civilians.
He was named a Distinguished Graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy in late 2018.[6]
Popular culture
editWillard appeared in and was a consultant for the 1986 film Top Gun. He pilots the “MiG-28” that receives "the bird" from Goose and Maverick.[citation needed]
In March 2010, a video in which Rep. Hank Johnson expressed his concern to Willard that the island of Guam might "capsize" and "tip over" due to overpopulation of military equipment and personnel went viral, garnering hundreds of thousands of views from thehill.com, hotair.com and latimes.com and was ultimately seen over three million times.[7] Willard reassured the Congressman, "we don't anticipate that", for which he received wide popular admiration.[8][9][10]
Awards and decorations
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References
edit- ^ a b "外務省: 外国人叙勲受章者名簿 平成24年". www.mofa.go.jp.
- ^ "U.S. Department of Defense". U.S. Department of Defense. Retrieved December 30, 2018.
- ^ U.S. Pacific Fleet Public Affairs (May 17, 2007). "Williard assumes command of U.S. Pacific Fleet". The Dolphin.
- ^ MCC(SW) Stefanie Sealy (September 25, 2009). "Walsh Takes Helm of U.S. Pacific Fleet" (PDF). United States Pacific Fleet Public Affairs Office. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 2, 2020. Retrieved September 28, 2009.
- ^ Art, Robert (September 1, 2015). "From the Director: September, 2015". MIT Seminar XXI. Massachusetts Institute of Technology.; Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "Find Alumni". MIT Seminar XXI. Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
- ^ U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association Distinguished Graduate Award Selection Panel (December 7, 2018). "Events and Programs – DGA Announcement – www.usna.com". www.usna.com. Retrieved December 30, 2018.
- ^ Video on YouTube
- ^ Malcolm, Andrew (April 1, 2010). "Democrat Rep. Hank Johnson worries loading too many people onto Guam could capsize the island". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 30, 2018.
- ^ ALLAHPUNDIT (March 31, 2010). "Dem Congressman: If Guam Gets Too Overpopulated, It Might Tip Over". hotair.com. HotAir.com/Salem Media. Retrieved December 30, 2018.
- ^ Wilkie, Christina (March 31, 2010). "Rep. Hank Johnson: Guam could 'tip over and capsize'". The Hill. Capitol Hill Publishing Corp. Retrieved December 30, 2018.
- ^ Honorary Officer of the Order of Australia Archived March 25, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, Commonwealth of Australia Special Notices Gazette, 7 March 2012.
- This article contains material from the United States Federal Government and is in the public domain.
External links
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Media related to Robert Willard at Wikimedia Commons