Vice Admiral Alfred Eugene Montgomery (12 June 1891 – 15 December 1961) was an officer in the United States Navy who served in World War I and World War II. A graduate of the

Naval Academy A naval academy provides education for prospective naval officers. See also * Military academy A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps. It normally pro ...

, he participated in operations in the Mexican waters during the

Mexican Revolution The Mexican Revolution ( es, Revolución Mexicana) was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from approximately 1910 to 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It resulted in the destruction ...

. He trained for submarines, and became

executive officer An executive officer is a person who is principally responsible for leading all or part of an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. In many militaries and police forces, an executive officer, o ...

of the submarine . In November 1914 he reported to the

Mare Island Naval Shipyard The Mare Island Naval Shipyard (MINSY) was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. It is located northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates th ...

where the new submarine was being fitted out, and served as her commander from June 1917 until she was lost on 17 December 1917. In June 1922, Montgomery qualified as a

naval aviator Naval aviation is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. Naval aviation is typically projected to a position nearer the target by way of an aircraft carrier. Carrier-based a ...

. He commanded observation and torpedo squadrons, and was executive officer of the aircraft carrier from November 1936 until June 1938, and her commanding officer from June 1940 to June 1941. In June 1941, he became chief of staff and aide to Commander Aircraft, Atlantic Fleet. He became commander of Carrier Division 12, flying his flag on in August 1943, and commander of Carrier Division 3 in March 1944, with his flag on . As such, he commanded a Task Group of the

Fast Carrier Task Force The Fast Carrier Task Force (TF 38 when assigned to Third Fleet, TF 58 when assigned to Fifth Fleet), was the main striking force of the United States Navy in the Pacific War from January 1944 through the end of the war in August 1945. The tas ...

in the

Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign The Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign were a series of battles fought from August 1942 through February 1944, in the Pacific theatre of World War II between the United States and Japan. They were the first steps of the drive across the cent ...

Battle of the Philippine Sea The Battle of the Philippine Sea (June 19–20, 1944) was a major naval battle of World War II that eliminated the Imperial Japanese Navy's ability to conduct large-scale carrier actions. It took place during the United States' amphibious invas ...

, and the Philippines campaign. After the war, he commanded the

Fifth Fleet The Fifth Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It has been responsible for naval forces in the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and parts of the Indian Ocean since 1995 after a 48-year hiatus. It shares a commander and headq ...

and the First Task Fleet.

Early life

Alfred Eugene Montgomery was born in

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

, on 12 June 1891, the son of Eugene and Julia Smith Montgomery. He was educated in Omaha and at

Brookline High School Brookline High School is a four-year public high school in the town of Brookline, Massachusetts. It is a part of Public Schools of Brookline. The Headmaster is Anthony Meyer who holds a Master of Education in Teaching and Curriculum from Harvard ...

in Massachusetts. He was appointed to the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

, from Nebraska in 1908. He graduated with the Class of 1912 on 8 June 1912, and was commissioned as an

ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

in 1914. His first assignment was to the

battleship A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of large caliber guns. It dominated naval warfare in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term ''battleship'' came into use in the late 1880s to describe a type of ...

. He was also assigned as an instructor on the , which was then serving as a training ship at the Naval Training Station, Newport, Rhode Island. Between February 1914 and July 1915 he served on the

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles. The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...

, participating in operations in the Mexican waters during the

, the cruiser and the battleship . In July 1915, he joined the

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

service. After a training course on the old

monitor Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, West Vir ...

USS ''Tonopah'', he became

of the submarine . In November 1914 he reported to the

where the new submarine was being fitted out. He served as its commander from June 1917 until 17 December 1917, when ''F-1'' collided with her sister ship during maneuvers, and sank within seconds with the loss of nineteen of her crew. Montgomery was then assigned to the submarine , which was being fitted out at the

Union Iron Works Union Iron Works, located in San Francisco, California, on the southeast waterfront, was a central business within the large industrial zone of Potrero Point, for four decades at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries. ...

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

. He became its commander when it was commissioned on 26 October 1918. He returned to the Union Iron Works in October 1920 to fit out and commission the , but before this occurred he was sent to Mare Island in January 1921 as superintendent of new works in the Machinery Division. In January 1922, Montgomery reported to the Naval Air Station, Pensacola, Florida, where he qualified as a

on 8 June 1922. He then became executive officer of VO-2, the observation squadron operating from the aircraft tender . In 1923 he became commander of VO-1 and then VO-6. After a short period as aide to Captain Walter R. Gherardi, who commanded the

Scouting Fleet The Scouting Fleet was created in 1922 as part of a major, post-World War I reorganization of the United States Navy. The Atlantic and Pacific fleets, which comprised a significant portion of the ships in the United States Navy, were combined into ...

's aircraft squadrons from the aircraft tender , he became commander of the

torpedo bomber A torpedo bomber is a military aircraft designed primarily to attack ships with aerial torpedoes. Torpedo bombers came into existence just before the First World War almost as soon as aircraft were built that were capable of carrying the weight ...

squadron VT-1. He was posted to the

Naval Air Station San Diego Naval Air Station North Island or NAS North Island , at the north end of the Coronado peninsula on San Diego Bay in San Diego, California, is part of the largest aerospace-industrial complex in the United States Navy – Naval Base Coronado (NBC ...

as assembly and repair officer in 1925, becoming its executive officer the next year. He then returned to sea as head of the air department on the

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...

. In July 1929, he became commander of VT-2 on the . Following the usual pattern of alternating sea and shore duty, he commanded the

Naval Air Station Seattle Naval Station Puget Sound is a former United States Navy, United States Naval station located on Sand Point (peninsula), Sand Point in Seattle, Washington. Today, the land is occupied by Magnuson Park. History After World War I, a movement was b ...

from August 1930 to May 1932. From July 1932 until May 1933 he was an aviation officer on the Staff of Commander Cruisers, Scouting Force, on its flagship, . He then became the head of the Aviation Section, Ship's Movement Division in the Office of the

Chief of Naval Operations The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the professional head 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 memb ...

at the Navy Department in Washington, D.C., and commanded the

Naval Air Station Anacostia Anacostia is a historic neighborhood in Southeast Washington, D.C. Its downtown is located at the intersection of Good Hope Road and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue. It is located east of the Anacostia River, after which the neighborhood is nam ...

from July 1934 to February 1936. He returned to sea in February 1936 as plans and operations officer on the staff of Commander Aircraft, Battle Force,

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

Henry V. Butler, and later Rear Admiral

Frederick J. Horne Admiral Frederick Joseph Horne (February 14, 1880 – October 18, 1959) 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. Early career Horne w ...

. He was executive officer of the aircraft carrier in November 1936 until June 1938, and of Naval Air Station San Diego again from July 1938 to July 1939.

World War II

Montgomery served as head of the Flight Division in the

Bureau of Aeronautics The Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer) was the U.S. Navy's material-support organization for naval aviation from 1921 to 1959. The bureau had "cognizance" (''i.e.'', responsibility) for the design, procurement, and support of naval aircraft and relate ...

in the Navy Department from July 1939 until June 1940, when he assumed command of ''Ranger''. In June 1941 he became Chief of Staff and Aide to the Commander Aircraft, Atlantic Fleet, subsequently redesignated Commander Carriers, Atlantic Fleet, Rear Admiral Arthur B. Cook. He was serving in this post when the United States entered

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

after the

bombing of Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, j ...

in December 1941. In this role, he was preoccupied with hunting and sinking German

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare role ...

s in the Atlantic. Promoted to rear admiral in May 1942, Montgomery became commander of the

Naval Air Station Corpus Christi Naval Air Station Corpus Christi is a United States Navy naval air base located six miles (10 km) southeast of the central business district (CBD) of Corpus Christi, in Nueces County, Texas. History A naval air station for Corpus Christi ...

in June, and then the Naval Air Training Center there in November. For his service at Corpus Christi, he was awarded the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

. His citation read: In August 1943 he became commander of Carrier Division 12, flying his flag on . AS such he led the raid on

Wake Island Wake Island ( mh, Ānen Kio, translation=island of the kio flower; also known as Wake Atoll) is a coral atoll in the western Pacific Ocean in the northeastern area of the Micronesia subregion, east of Guam, west of Honolulu, southeast of To ...

on 5-6 October 1943, his force being designated

Task Force 14 Task may refer to: * Task (computing), in computing, a program execution context * Task (language instruction) refers to a certain type of activity used in language instruction * Task (project management), an activity that needs to be accomplished ...

. He became commander of Carrier Division 3 in March 1944, with his flag on . As such, he commanded a Task Group of the

, which was known as Task Force 58 when part of the

and Task Force 38 when part of the

Third Fleet The United States Third Fleet is one of the numbered fleets in the United States Navy. Third Fleet's area of responsibility includes approximately fifty million square miles of the eastern and northern Pacific Ocean areas including the Bering ...

. During the

he led Task Group 50.3, with the carriers ''Essex'', ''Bunker Hill'' and . His Task Group attacked

Rabaul Rabaul () is a township in the East New Britain province of Papua New Guinea, on the island of New Britain. It lies about 600 kilometres to the east of the island of New Guinea. Rabaul was the provincial capital and most important settlement in ...

on 11 November, and then bombed

Tarawa Tarawa is an atoll and the capital of the Republic of Kiribati,Kiribati
''

Navy Distinguished Service Medal The Navy Distinguished Service Medal is a military decoration of the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps which was first created in 1919 and is presented to sailors and Marines to recognize distinguished and exceptionally meritoriou ...

: For a raid on

Saipan Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...

, Montgomery was award the

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...

: For the

Mariana and Palau Islands campaign The Mariana and Palau Islands campaign, also known as Operation Forager, was an offensive launched by United States forces against Imperial Japanese forces in the Mariana Islands and Palau in the Pacific Ocean between June and November 1944 du ...

, Montgomery led Task Group 58.2, with the ''Bunker Hill'', , and . While his forces won a great victory in the

, Montgomery, in his report on the battle, expressed his opinion that: Montgomery was awarded a second Navy Distinguished Service Medal for his part: A third Navy Distinguished Service Medal was awarded for the Philippines campaign: Montgomery became Commander Fleet Air, West Coast, with his headquarters at the Naval Air Station, San Diego, in January 1945. He tried to bring his experiences in combat to bear in his new role, which involved supplying the combat units with men and equipment. For his services in this job, he was awarded a second

. In July 1945 he became commander of Pacific Fleet Air Forces, with the rank of vice admiral.

Later life

After the war, Montgomery became commander of the Fifth Fleet in August 1946, flying his flag from the command ship . The position of commander of the Fifth Fleet then became commander of First Task Fleet, on 1 January 1947. He then became commander of the First Task Fleet in July 1947, flying his flag from the battleship . He reverted to his permanent rank of rear admiral in August 1947, and became commander of the

Alaskan Sea Frontier Sea Frontiers were several, now disestablished, commands of the United States Navy as areas of defense against enemy vessels, especially submarines, along the U.S. coasts. They existed from 1 July 1941 until in some cases the 1970s. Sea Frontiers ...

and the 17th Naval District. He commanded the U.S. Naval Base Bermuda from 1949 to 1950. His last command, in February 1950, was Commander Fleet Air, at

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...

. He retired in July 1951, upon which he was given a

tombstone promotion A tombstone promotion is an advance in rank awarded at retirement. It often does not include any corresponding increase in retired pay, in which case it is an honorary promotion whose only benefit is the right to be addressed by the higher rank an ...

to vice admiral. Montgomery died at the Naval Hospital in

Bremerton, Washington Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington. The population was 37,729 at the 2010 census and an estimated 41,405 in 2019, making it the largest city on the Kitsap Peninsula. Bremerton is home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Bremerto ...

, on 13 December 1961, at the age of 70. He was survived by his wife, Alice Claire Smith Montgomery, and his daughter Anne. His son, Lieutenant Brooke Montgomery, was killed in a plane crash on 1 February 1956.

Notes

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Montgomery, Alfred E. 1891 births 1961 deaths Military personnel from Omaha, Nebraska Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States) United States Naval Academy alumni United States Navy admirals United States Navy World War II admirals Brookline High School alumni