The commandant of the Coast Guard is the service chief and highest-ranking member of the United States Coast Guard. The commandant is an admiral, appointed for a four-year term by the president of the United States upon confirmation by the United States Senate. The commandant is assisted by a vice commandant, who is also an admiral, and two area commanders and two deputy commandants, all of whom are vice admirals.
Alfred Carroll Richmond was an admiral of the United States Coast Guard who served as the 11th Commandant of the United States Coast Guard from 1954 to 1962, the second longest tenure of any U.S. Coast Guard Commandant following Russell R. Waesche who served from 1936 to 1946.
Merlin O'Neill served as the tenth Commandant of the United States Coast Guard from 1 January 1950 to 1 June 1954.
Joseph Francis Farley served as the ninth Commandant of the United States Coast Guard from 1946 to 1949. He was also the first Coast Guard officer to be issued a service number and held #1000 on the Coast Guard officer rolls.
Harry Gabriel Hamlet was the seventh Commandant of the United States Coast Guard, from 1932 to 1936.
William Edward Reynolds served as the fifth Commandant of the United States Coast Guard, from 1919 to 1924.
Thad William Allen is a former admiral of the United States Coast Guard who served as the 23rd commandant from 2006 to 2010. Allen is best known for his performance directing the federal response to hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the Gulf Coast region from September 2005 to January 2006, and for his role as National Incident Commander of the Unified Command for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. Robert J. Papp Jr. succeeded him as Commandant on 25 May 2010.
Vice Admiral John P. Currier was the 28th Vice Commandant of the United States Coast Guard. He assumed the position from Vice Admiral Sally Brice-O'Hara on May 18, 2012 and was relieved on May 20, 2014 by Vice Admiral Peter Neffenger.
Vivien Suzanne Crea was the 25th Vice Commandant of the United States Coast Guard under Admiral Thad W. Allen. Vice Commandant is the second highest position in the Coast Guard, and she was the first woman to hold it. She is the former Commander of the Coast Guard Atlantic Area, and was confirmed by the Senate to her historic post in June 2006. Crea retired on August 7, 2009, and was replaced by VADM David Pekoske.
This article covers the organization of the United States Coast Guard.
Walter Stratton Anderson was a Vice Admiral of the United States Navy, who served as the Executive officer of USS Arizona in World War I and as Commander Battleships, Battle Force in the Pacific Fleet, and of the Gulf Sea Frontier, during World War II.
Charles D. Wurster is a retired vice admiral in the United States Coast Guard who last served as the Commander, Pacific Area and Commander, Defense Force West. He is now retired from the Coast Guard, is the President/CEO of the Port of San Diego, and serves as national commodore of the Sea Scouting division of the BSA.
Jody A. Breckenridge is a former commander of the U.S. Coast Guard's Pacific Area.
John Herbert "Babe" Brown, Jr. was a decorated officer in the United States Navy with the rank of Vice admiral during World War II and an American football player. A graduate of the United States Naval Academy, Brown trained as submariner and served successively as Commander, Submarine Squadron 4 and Commander Training Command, Submarine Force, Pacific Fleet in the opening years of World War II. Brown was then promoted to Rear admiral and commanded Cruiser Division One during the bombardment of Japan in summer 1945.
Ronald James Rábago is a retired United States Coast Guard rear admiral who in 2006 became the first person of Hispanic American descent to be promoted to flag rank in the United States Coast Guard. He retired as the assistant commandant for engineering and logistics and the United States Coast Guard's chief engineer in 2014.
Carl Frederick Holden was a decorated officer in the United States Navy who reached the rank of Vice Admiral. A veteran of both World Wars, he became an expert in Naval communications, graduating with a master's degree in electrical communications from Harvard University. Holden served as Director of Naval Communications between September 1942 - April 1943 and distinguished himself as commanding officer of the battleship USS New Jersey, the flagship of Admiral William F. Halsey. He rose to the admiral's rank in 1945 and commanded Cruiser Division 18 in late phase of the World War II.
DeWitt Peck was a decorated officer of the United States Marine Corps with the rank of major general, who served as the 18th Assistant to the Major General Commandant of the Marine Corps during World War II. He later commanded the 1st Marine Division during Operation Beleaguer within Chinese Civil War.
Cari Batson Thomas is a retired rear admiral of the United States Coast Guard and a 1984 graduate of the U. S. Coast Guard Academy. On January 22, 2010, Thomas became the third female commander of USCG Training Center Cape May to be advanced to a flag officer. Her final assignment was Assistant Commandant for Human Resources at the Coast Guard Academy.
Sandra Leigh Stosz is a retired United States Coast Guard Vice Admiral whose final active duty assignment was as Deputy Commandant for Mission Support. Previously, she was chosen by the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard, ADM Robert J. Papp to become the superintendent of the United States Coast Guard Academy in 2011. As such, she is the first woman to lead a United States service academy. At the time of her appointment to head the Coast Guard Academy, she was the Coast Guard's director of Reserve and leadership. Stosz was confirmed as a vice admiral in May 2015.
Karl Leo Schultz is a retired United States Coast Guard admiral who served as the 26th Commandant of the Coast Guard from 2018 to 2022.
Vice admiral 
