Admiral john towers biography

One aircraft of the flight, the NC-4 , completed the mission to Europe. He organized the expansion of the Navy from 2, to nearly 10, aircraft and directed Naval Aviation in the opening period of World War II. Insistence on leading a combat command resulted in his appointment as Commander Naval Air Forces Pacific Fleet where he directed the expansion of the carrier forces and led the air arm of the largest fleet ever assembled in history.

His contributions were in large measure responsible for the victory in the Pacific. On December 1,, after 45 years of dedicated service to his country Admiral John H. He organized the expansion of the Navy from 2, to nearly 10, aircraft, and directed naval aviation in the opening period of World War II. Insistence on leading a combat command resulted in his appointment as Commander of the Naval Air Forces Pacific Fleet where he directed the expansion of the Carrier forces and led the air arm of the largest fleet ever assembled in history.

His contributions were in large measure responsible for the victory in the Pacific. On December 1st , after 45 years of dedicated service to his country, Admiral John H. Towers retired from active service. Inducted in In this capacity, he served as Admiral Chester Nimitz 's chief advisor on naval aviation policy, fleet logistics, and administration matters.

He held this position in the closing days of the war. In , President Truman signed the first Outline Command Plan now known as the Unified Command Plan that called for the establishment of several joint or unified commands. On 1 January , the new United States Pacific Command stood up as one of the first unified commands with Admiral Towers as its first commander.

He served as the commander of Pacific Command for only two months before being reassigned: 1 January — 28 February Admiral Towers was dual-hatted as both commander in chief, Pacific Fleet and commander in chief, Pacific Command. Towers died in St. In , Towers was posthumously designated the second recipient of the Gray Eagle Award , as the most senior active naval aviator from until his retirement.

A crater on the moon was named in his honor by the Apollo 17 mission. Russell Regional Airport, Rome, Georgia.

Admiral john towers biography

Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikimedia Commons Wikidata item. United States Navy admiral. Early life and career [ edit ]. Pioneer naval aviator [ edit ]. Naval aviator designation and insignia [ edit ]. World War I [ edit ]. Interwar years, — [ edit ].

Transatlantic crossing: Flight of NC-4, [ edit ]. Sea and shore assignments, s and s [ edit ]. World War II [ edit ]. World War II operational commands [ edit ]. Post-war service [ edit ]. Retirement [ edit ]. Honors and awards [ edit ]. Namesakes [ edit ]. See also [ edit ]. References [ edit ]. United States Naval Academy. Retrieved July 10, Supplement April.

United States Naval Institute : 2— 8. Archived from the original PDF on 21 June Retrieved 15 January Later, he took over the training of the other young Navy pilots. One of the highlights of occurred in October when he rigged extra gasoline tanks to a Curtiss seaplane for an endurance flight. Early in December he completed tests which demonstrated the ability to spot submarines from the air, even in the muddy waters of the Chesapeake Bay.

In he was in charge of the aviation unit which began its first operations with the Fleet off Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He and his follow Navy pilots explored all the potential of their planes to serve the Navy aerial reconnaissance, bombing, aerial photography, and wireless communications. In the ocean waters off Cuba they were able to spot submarines at depths of 30 to 40 feet.

One day in June, , he was a passenger in the Wright seaplane being piloted by Ensign William Billingsley. Suddenly, 1, feet above Chesapeake Bay, they hit severe turbulence. Without warnings Billingsley was hurled out of the seat and fell to his death on the water far below. The first Navy pilot to make the supreme sacrifice. Unbelievably, Towers managed to catch and cling to a wing strut and ride the plummeting unpiloted plane down, miraculously surviving the crash.

After that incident, he ordered safety belts for all the Navy planes.