Frank Peak Akers (March 28, 1901 – March 22, 1988) was an American naval

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 ...

who was the first aviator to make an instrument landing aboard an aircraft carrier.

Military career

Frank Akers graduated from the US Naval Academy in 1922 and was soon assigned to the , which operated in the Pacific Ocean. On 11 September 1925, he earned his naval "Wings of Gold" and became an aviator. He later earned a master's degree in electronic communications from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in 1933. After graduation, he became a flight test officer at the Naval Air Station in San Diego, California. While in this assignment on 30 July 1935, he participated in an unusually hazardous experiment and attempted to land about the nation's first aircraft carrier, the . What made this hazardous was that he was fitted with a special hood preventing visual contact with the outside world. He earned the Distinguished Flying Cross for being the first to land a plane on a carrier deck without sight. Lieutenant Frank Akers (USN)

During

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 ...

, he served as a navigator about the , and participated in the famed

Doolittle Raid The Doolittle Raid, also known as the Tokyo Raid, was an air raid on 18 April 1942 by the United States on the Japanese capital Tokyo and other places on Honshu during World War II. It was the first American air operation to strike the Japan ...

on Tokyo and in the

Battle of Midway The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea. The U.S. Navy under Adm ...

. Later in the war, while stationed in Washington as head of the Radio and Electrical Branch of the Bureau of Aeronautics, he received 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 ...

for his part in developing more efficient and simplified aircraft electronic systems, including radar bombing. After the war, as the commanding officer of the from 1945 to 1946, he amassed a new world's record of 642 carrier landings in a single day. He is also the only aviator ever to have been assigned as Assistant Chief of Naval Operations for Undersea Warfare, from 1951 to 1954. On 11 January 1962, he received the

Gray Eagle Award The Gray Eagle Award is presented to the Naval Aviator on continuous active duty in U.S. Navy or Marine Corps who has held that designation for the longest period of time. A similar trophy, the Gray Owl Award, is also presented to the Naval Flight ...

honoring him as the Naval Aviator who had been flying longer than any other on active duty, which he held until his retirement on 1 April 1963.

References

External links

*
Commanding officers of the USS ''Saratoga'' (CV-3)

Navy's First Blind Flight
{{DEFAULTSORT:Akers, Frank Peak United States Naval Academy alumni United States Navy pilots of World War II United States Navy rear admirals (upper half) Harvard University alumni Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Legion of Merit 1901 births 1988 deaths