US Naval Air Training Center - Yearbook (Corpus Christi, TX)

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L. GATE ArTemus L. GoTes, former PresidenT of The New York TrusT Company, broughT wiTh him To his presenT posT, c1 weolTh of experience gained 05 cm execuTive in a long disfinguished and successful business career. To add further To his back- ground, he has The disTincTion of being one of our TirsT Naval AvioTors. Previous To The ouTbreok of World War I, he was given The opporTuniTy To enTer The Navy's firsT TIighT Training program. ATTer successful compleTion of This Training, he was commissioned as on Ensign 0nd designoTed os Novel AvioTor No. 65 OUT of The original group who qualified. , During World War I, he served 05 Commanding Officer of The U. 3. Novel Air SToTion 0T Dunkerque, France. He had many oTher imporTonT ossignmenTs ThoT included ocTive flying and odminisTroTive duTies for The duroTion of The War. AT The conclusion of The war in 1919, as o LieuTenonT Commander, he was released from ocTive duTy and re- Turned To civilian life. T For his ocTive service in World War i, he was awarded The DisTinguished Service Medal TUSNT, The DisTingUished Flying Cross iBriTishT and The Croix de Guerre wiTh Palm iFrenchT. He was mode 0 Chevalier of The Legion of Honor by The French GovernmenT. Page 21

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726 alkwazmwe JAMES V. FUHHESTAL SNRETIHY W THE MW elumes V. Tomesml begume The forTy-eighTh SecreTcuy of The Navy on May 18, W44, when he succeeded The lute Hunk Kilrx, who died April 28, 1944. Before assuming his presenT posiTion, he served 05 Under SecreTory of The Navy. h him To The office of SecreTory of The Navy, 0 weolTh of experience and an enviable record gained 05 0 business execuTive and 0 public servonT. In June 1940, he resigned as PresidenT of The banking TTrm of DiHon, Reed and Company, To occepT on oppoinTmenT os AdminisTroTive AssisTonT To PresidenT RoosevelT in work connecTed wiTh NoTionol Defense Problems. ATTer serving in This copociTy for o shorT Time, he was oppoinTed To The office of Under SecreTory OT The Navy. As Under SecreTory of The Navy, he made several inspecTion Trips To The SouTh Pacific To obToin TirsT hond informoTion on The ocTiviTies of our Torces in ThoT area. The TirsT Trip Took him To Pearl Harbor, New Caledonia, 0nd EspiriTo SonTo, New Hebrides. LoTer he wenT To The Pacific aboard a boTTleship ThoT porTicipoTed in The BoTTIe of Kwoiolein, 0nd wenT oshcre en The second day afTer The Marines hod esToblished 0 beachheod. While on This Trip, he inspecTed insToHoTions OT Solomon Island, New Guinea and AusTrolio. WiTh TirsT hand knowledge of The huge Tosk ahead of our forces, SecreTory ForresTol hos vigorously expanded The U 5. Navy in oil deporTmenTs so ThoT H is now The IorgesT 0nd mosT powerful in The world. He has combined The meTiculous planning of The Chiefs of STOTT and The use of overwhelming power To carry The war To a successful ccnclusion. SecreTor ForresTol brou hT wiT y 9

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VICE ADMIRAL AUBREY W. FITCH, USN DEPUTY CHIEF 0F NAVAL 0PERAT10NS TAIIU Vice Admiral Aubrey W. FiTch, USN, o veTeron of 38 years in The U. 8. Navy, succeeded Vice Admiral Jchn McCain, USN, 0s DepUTy Chief of Novel OperoTiOhs for Air. His eminenT quoliTicoTions for This posT assures Naval AvioTors of OUT- sTonding leadership in The coming show-down sTruggle wiTh Japan. 'Admirol FiTch wos groduoTed from The U. S. Naval Academy wiTh The Class OT 1906. ATTer groduoTion, he served The usual Tours of duTy wiTh The FleeT 0nd CT The beginning of World War l, was serving as Gunnery Officer on board The USS-WYOMING. He also served as skipper of The USS LANGLEY. In 1929, he Transferred To ovioTion 0nd OT The age of 46 reporTed To Pensacola for TlighT Training. Admiral FiTch wos sToTicned 0T Coronado, California, when news come of The Jop oTTock on Peori Harbor. The following day a carrier division under his command including The SARATOGA, was sTeoming Tcword The enemy in o hunT TheiT eXTended To Midway and Wake. IT was noT unTil May 7, i942, however, ThoT They come To grips wiTh The enemy in The BoTTle of The Coral Sea. When The smoke of ThQT boTTle cleared, The Jops had suffered Their TirsT serious seTbock in Their drive To AusTrGIio. His Timely decision To abandon ship oTTer his flagship, The LEXINGTON, was foToHy damaged, saved The lives of The crew. As Commander AirchTT, SouTh Pacific Force, Admiral FiTch coordinoTed Navy, Marine Corps, Army and New Zealand oir uniTs during The ioinT operoTions of Allied Forces QTIOOT 0nd ashore in The South Pacific. His Angels of DesTrucTion sank more ships, knocked down more planes, and occounTed for more Jops Than cmy oTher commander of shore-bosed aircrafT in The American ormed Torces. The ouThoriTy for This sToTemenT is Admiral Halsey, who recommended him for promoTion from Rear To Vice Admiral QTTer The BoTTIe of The Coral Sea. Admiral FiTch was awarded The DisTinguished Service Medal for his skiHTul direcTion of 0 Task force ThoT ouTwiTTed cmd ouTToughT 0 powerful Japanese force in The BoTTle of The Coral See. Page 22