The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the highest ranking officer of the United States Navy. The position is a statutory office held by an admiral who is a military adviser and deputy to the secretary of the Navy. In a separate capacity as a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the CNO is a military adviser to the National Security Council, the Homeland Security Council, the secretary of defense, and the president.
The United States Fleet Forces Command (USFF) is a service component command of the United States Navy that provides naval forces to a wide variety of U.S. forces. The naval resources may be allocated to Combatant Commanders such as United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) under the authority of the Secretary of Defense. Originally formed as United States Atlantic Fleet (USLANTFLT) in 1906, it has been an integral part of the defense of the United States of America since the early 20th century. In 2002, the Fleet comprised over 118,000 Navy and Marine Corps personnel serving on 186 ships and in 1,300 aircraft, with an area of responsibility ranging over most of the Atlantic Ocean from the North Pole to the South Pole, the Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and the waters of the Pacific Ocean along the coasts of Central and South America.
Jeremy Michael Boorda was a United States Navy admiral who served as the 25th Chief of Naval Operations. Boorda is notable as the first person to have risen from the enlisted ranks to become Chief of Naval Operations, the highest-ranking billet in the United States Navy.
William Morrow Fechteler was an admiral in the United States Navy who served as Chief of Naval Operations during the Eisenhower administration.
The vice chief of naval operations (VCNO) is the second highest-ranking commissioned United States Navy officer in the Department of the Navy and functions as the principal deputy of the chief of naval operations and by statute, the vice chief is appointed as a four-star admiral.
Frank Benton Kelso II was an admiral of the United States Navy, who served as Chief of Naval Operations from 1990 to 1994.
Jonathan William Greenert is a former United States Navy admiral who served as the 30th Chief of Naval Operations from September 23, 2011, to September 18, 2015. He previously served as the 36th Vice Chief of Naval Operations from August 13, 2009, to August 22, 2011. Prior to that, he served as Commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command from September 29, 2007, to July 29, 2009, deputy chief of Naval Operations for Integration of Capabilities and Resources from September 2006 to September 2007, and commander of U.S. Seventh Fleet from August 2004 to September 2006. He retired from the navy after over 40 years of service. In March 2016, the National Bureau of Asian Research announced that Greenert would become the third holder of the John M. Shalikashvili Chair in National Security Studies at NBR. In April 2016, Greenert was appointed to the board of directors for BAE Systems for a three-year term.
The structure of the United States Navy consists of four main bodies: the Office of the Secretary of the Navy, the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, the operating forces, and the Shore Establishment.
Admiral Frederick Joseph Horne was a four-star admiral in the United States Navy. As the first Vice Chief of Naval Operations, he directed all Navy logistics during World War II.
Herbert Douglas Riley was a highly decorated officer in the United States Navy with the rank of Vice admiral. A United States Naval Academy graduate, he trained as naval aviator and distinguished himself first as commanding officer of the escort carrier USS Makassar Strait during the combats at Iwo Jima and Okinawa during World War II.
Ted N. "Twig" Branch retired as a vice admiral in the United States Navy on 1 October 2016, after serving the last three years of his 37-year career as the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for information warfare. In that capacity, he was the resource sponsor for the N2N6 portfolio which includes program investments for assured command and control, battlespace awareness, and integrated fires. He was the Navy's Chief Information Officer, the Director of Navy Cybersecurity, the leader of the Information Warfare Community, and the Director of Naval Intelligence. Branch was questioned by the Department of Justice regarding the Glenn Defense Marine Asia investigation in November 2013 and his access to classified information was suspended by the Secretary of the Navy. After a three-year investigation, Branch was cleared of all charges.
The Master-at-Arms (MA) rating is responsible for law enforcement and force protection in the United States Navy—equivalent to the United States Army Military Police, the United States Marine Corps Military Police, the United States Air Force Security Forces, and the United States Coast Guard's Maritime Law Enforcement Specialist. It is one of the oldest ratings in the United States Navy, having been recognized since the inception of the U.S. Navy.
The Fat Leonard scandal is an ongoing investigation and prosecution of corruption within the United States Navy during the 2000s and 2010s. It has involved ship support contractor Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA), a Thai subsidiary of the Glenn Marine Group. The Washington Post called the scandal "perhaps the worst national-security breach of its kind to hit the Navy since the end of the Cold War." The company's chief executive, president, and chairman, Malaysian national Leonard Glenn Francis bribed a large number of uniformed officers of the United States Seventh Fleet with at least a half million dollars in cash, plus travel expenses, luxury items, parties and prostitutes, in return for classified material about the movements of U.S. ships and submarines, confidential contracting information, and information about active law enforcement investigations into Glenn Defense Marine Asia. Francis then "exploited the intelligence for illicit profit, brazenly ordering his moles to redirect aircraft carriers, ships and subs to ports he controlled in Southeast Asia so he could more easily bilk the Navy for fuel, tugboats, barges, food, water and sewage removal." The Navy, through GDMA, even employed divers to search harbors for explosives. He also directed them to author "Bravo Zulu" memos, which is an informal term for a letter of commendation from the Navy given to civilians who have performed outstanding services for the Navy, in order to bolster GDMA's credibility for jobs "well done".
Michael Martin Gilday is a retired United States Navy officer who last served as the 32nd chief of naval operations from August 22, 2019 to August 14, 2023. Gilday commanded two destroyers, served as Director of the Joint Staff, commanded the Tenth Fleet/Fleet Cyber Command, and led Carrier Strike Group 8.
Lisa Marie Franchetti is a United States Navy admiral who has served as the 42nd vice chief of naval operations since 2 September 2022, and as acting chief of naval operations (CNO) since 14 August 2023. She is also the nominee to become CNO in her own right in 2023.
Sean Scott Buck is a retired vice admiral in the United States Navy who last served as the Superintendent of the United States Naval Academy from July 26, 2019 to August 27, 2023.
Dick Henry Guinn was a highly decorated officer in the United States Navy with the rank of vice admiral. A Naval Academy graduate, he distinguished himself as pilot and flight leader of Fighter Squadron 94 during the sinking of Japanese cruiser Aoba in July 1945, for which he received the Navy Cross, the United States military's second-highest decoration awarded for valor in combat.
John Franklin Shafroth Jr. was a highly decorated officer in the United States Navy with the rank of Vice Admiral. He distinguished himself as Commander of destroyer USS Terry during World War I and received the Navy Cross, the United States Navy second-highest decoration awarded for valor in combat.
