Glynn Robert Donaho (March 25, 1905 – May 26, 1986),

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

d "Donc", was a

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officer known principally for his exploits as a

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 ...

commander during

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, for which he received 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 ...

four times, the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

twice, and the

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

Early life

Donaho was born in George,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. He entered

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 ...

on July 10, 1923 and graduated in 1927. He was commissioned

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, upon graduation.

Military career

Donaho's first assignment was aboard the battleship from July 1927 to May 1930, followed by Submarine training at the Submarine Training School at

Naval Submarine Base New London Naval Submarine Base New London is the primary United States Navy East Coast submarine base, also known as the "Home of the Submarine Force." It is located in Groton, Connecticut directly across the Thames River from its namesake city of New Lon ...

, Connecticut, from June to December 1930. Donaho served as Navigator aboard the submarine from December 1930 to March 1933, and then as Navigator aboard the submarine from March 1933 to August 1934. His next assignment was as

Navigator A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation.Grierson, MikeAviation History—Demise of the Flight Navigator FrancoFlyers.org website, October 14, 2008. Retrieved August 31, 2014. The navigator's primar ...

aboard the submarine . from August 1934 to June 1935, followed by

Naval Postgraduate School The Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a public graduate school operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California. It offers master’s and doctoral degrees in more than 70 fields of study to the U.S. Armed Forces, DOD ci ...

at the United States Naval Academy from June 1935 to May 1937. Donaho served on the Staff of the Commander, Submarine Squadron 4 from June 1937 to May 1940, and then as Executive Officer aboard the submarine from May 1940 to November 1941.

World War II

Donaho became Commanding Officer of the submarine during her fitting out in November 1941. He led the submarine in five war patrols in the Pacific during

and sunk four vessels totaling 28,000 tons, and damaging two others totaling 12,620 tons. He was promoted to lieutenant commander at the beginning of 1942 and to commander in September of that year. In 1944, Donaho commanded Submarine Division 222 as well as the submarine , during her third war patrol. He had contributed materially to the success of 18 war patrols, which resulted in the destruction of approximately 280,000 tons of enemy shipping and the damaging of an additional 80,000 tons. He again served with the Commander of Submarine Division 222 from October 1944 to May 1945, and then as Operations Officer with the Commander of Battleship Squadron 1 from May to October 1945.

Post war

After the war, Donaho testified as a witness at the court martial of Captain Charles Butler McVay III, commander of the . Although he was called as a prosecution witness, Donaho's testimony was actually helpful to McVay. Both Donaho and Mochitsura Hashimoto, the commander of ''I-58'', the Japanese submarine that sank the ''Indianapolis,'' testified that zigzagging would not have saved the ''Indianapolis.'' Donaho was the Director of the Recruiting Division in the Bureau of Naval Personnel in Washington, D.C., from October 1945 to May 1948, followed by service as the Commander of

Submarine Squadron 3 Submarine Squadron 3 (also known as SUBRON 3) was a squadron of submarines of the United States Navy based at Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam, Pearl Harbor, HI which was disestablished in 2012. Submarine Squadron 3 was first established on Nov ...

from May 1948 to June 1950. Donaho served as Assistant for

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

Matters in the International Affairs 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 ...

from June to August 1950, followed by

National War College The National War College (NWC) of the United States is a school in the National Defense University. It is housed in Roosevelt Hall on Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C., the third-oldest Army post still active. History The National War Colle ...

from August 1950 to June 1951. Donaho's next assignment was as Head of the Foreign Military Aid Branch with the International Affairs Division in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations from June 1951 to July 1953, and then as Commander of

Destroyer Squadron 17 In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in 1 ...

from July 1953 to January 1955. He served as Chief of Staff and Aide to the Commander of

United States Seventh Fleet The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of th ...

from January to December 1955, followed by service as Commander of United States Naval Base Subic Bay in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

from December 1955 to August 1957. Donaho was promoted to

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 ...

in 1957. Donaho served as the Commander of Destroyer Flotilla 3 from August 1957 to September 1958, and then as Director of the Logistics Plans Division in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations from September 1958 to September 1959. His next assignment was as Director of Naval Administration from September 1959 to September 1962, followed by service as

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from September 1962 to July 1964, during this time he was promoted to vice admiral in 1963. His final assignment was as Commander of the

Military Sea Transportation Service Military Sealift Command (MSC) is an organization that controls the replenishment and military transport ships of the United States Navy. Military Sealift Command has the responsibility for providing sealift and ocean transportation for all US m ...

from July 1964 until his retirement from the Navy on April 1, 1967.

Later life

After his retirement from navy, Donaho lived in

Washington D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

and

McLean, Virginia McLean ( ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County in Northern Virginia. McLean is home to many diplomats, military, members of Congress, and high-ranking government officials partially due to its proxim ...

until 1978, before moving to

Sierra Vista, Arizona Sierra Vista is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2020 Census, the population of the city is 45,308, and is the 27th most populous city in Arizona. The city is part of the Sierra Vista-Douglas Metropolitan Are ...

. Donaho died in

, on May 26, 1986, due to

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

and

heart ailment Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, ...

. In accordance to his wishes, he was cremated and his ashes were scattered over the

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from the fantail of a United States Navy submarine.

Awards and decorations

First Navy Cross citation

His official first Navy Cross citation reads: :Action Date: August 15 – September 15, 1942 :Name: Glynn Robert Donaho :Service: Navy :Rank: Lieutenant Commander :Company: Commanding Officer :Division: U.S.S. Flying Fish (SS-229) :Citation: ''The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Lieutenant Commander Glynn Robert Donaho (NSN: 0-61092/1100), United States Navy, for extraordinary heroism and courageous devotion to duty in the line of his profession as Commanding Officer of the U.S.S. FLYING FISH (SS-229), on the SECOND War Patrol of that submarine during the period 15 August 1942 to 15 September 1942, in action with enemy Japanese naval forces in the Pacific War Area. Upon sighting a KONGO Class enemy battleship heavily screened by air and surface craft, Lieutenant Commander Donaho daringly maneuvered his ship to penetrate the enemy screen. In a bold, determined attack, he scored two direct hits, sinking an enemy patrol vessel and severely damaging the battleship which was observed to be burning fiercely one hour and fifty-three minutes later when the FLYING FISH returned to periscope depth after being driven deep by heavy enemy counter-offensive. The courage and skill displayed by Lieutenant Commander Donaho and the exemplary fighting spirit of his command were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.''

Second Navy Cross citation

His official second Navy Cross citation reads: :Action Date: October 27 – December 16, 1942 :Name: Glynn Robert Donaho :Service: Navy :Rank: Lieutenant Commander :Company: Commanding Officer :Division: U.S.S. Flying Fish (SS-229) :Citation: ''The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting a Gold Star in lieu of a Second Award of the Navy Cross to Lieutenant Commander Glynn Robert Donaho (NSN: 0-61092/1100), United States Navy, for extraordinary heroism in the line of his profession as Commanding Officer of the U.S.S. FLYING FISH (SS-229), on the THIRD War Patrol of that submarine during the period 27 October 1942 to 16 December 1942, in enemy controlled waters of the Solomon Islands. With skillful maneuvering and outstanding seamanship, Lieutenant Commander Donaho, despite the great mental and physical strain caused by long patrols in enemy waters, relentlessly pressed home his attacks. Defying the ever-present danger of anti-submarine measures, the men under his command on the FLYING FISH directed their torpedo fire with such accuracy that two enemy destroyers were sunk, while their own ship came through unscathed. Lieutenant Commander Donaho's courageous devotion to duty and intrepid fighting spirit reflect great credit upon himself, his command, and the United States Naval Service.''

Third Navy Cross citation

His official third Navy Cross citation reads: :General Orders: Commander in Chief Pacific: Serial 01227 :Action Date: January 5 – February 28, 1943 :Name: Glynn Robert Donaho :Service: Navy :Rank: Lieutenant Commander :Company: Commanding Officer :Division: U.S.S. Flying Fish (SS-229) :Citation: ''The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting a Second Gold Star in lieu of a Third Award of the Navy Cross to Lieutenant Commander Glynn Robert Donaho (NSN: 0-61092/1100), United States Navy, for extraordinary heroism and distinguished service in the line of his profession as Commanding Officer of the U.S.S. FLYING FISH (SS-229), on its FOURTH War Patrol in the Pacific, patrolling the waters of the Marianas Islands from 5 January 1943 to 28 February 1943. Skillfully maneuvering his ship within striking distance of the enemy, Commander Donaho made repeated torpedo attacks against Japanese shipping, sinking four vessels totaling 28,000 tons, and damaging two others totaling 12,620 tons. Despite vicious and determined countermeasures, he and his gallant men brought the FLYING FISH through these actions with only minor damage and without personnel casualties. Commander Donaho's able and fearless leadership and aggressive fighting spirit were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.''

Fourth Navy Cross citation

His official fourth Navy Cross citation reads: :General Orders: Pacific Fleet Board Awards: Serial 80 (January 5, 1945) :Action Date: July 23 – October 3, 1944 :Name: Glynn Robert Donaho :Service: Navy :Rank: Captain :Company: Commanding Officer :Division: U.S.S. Picuda (SS-382) :Citation: ''The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting a Third Gold Star in lieu of a Fourth Award of the Navy Cross to Captain hen CommanderGlynn Robert Donaho (NSN: 0-61092/1100), United States Navy, for extraordinary heroism in the line of his profession as Commanding Officer of the U.S.S. PICUDA (SS-382), on the THIRD War Patrol of that submarine during the period 23 July 1944 to 3 October 1944, and as Commander of the ELEVENTH Coordinated Attack Group of Submarines. Despite strong air and surface escort screens maintained around enemy shipping, Captain Donaho launched well planned and aggressive torpedo attacks which resulted in the sinking of five enemy freighters totaling 20,000 tons, and in the infliction of severe damage on a large 10,000-ton Japanese transport. In addition, he planned the actions of the attack group which sank sixteen enemy ships totaling 93,500 tons and damaged six other enemy ships totaling 49,000 tons and, escaping severe enemy countermeasures, brought his ship back to port. His professional skill and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.''

References

*''Silent victory: the U.S. submarine war against Japan,'' Clay Blair Jr. (Imprint Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press, 2001) *''Abandon Ship! The Saga of the U.S.S. Indianapolis, the Navy's Greatest Sea Disaster,'' Richard F. Newcomb (Harper Collins, 2001)

External links

Glynn R. Donaho
U.S. Naval Historical Center, provides photos and biographical information on Vice Admiral Donaho.

* ttp://www.ussindianapolis.org/mcvay.htm Additional information regarding Donaho's testimony at Captain McVay's court martial. {{DEFAULTSORT:Donaho, Glynn R. 1905 births 1986 deaths United States Navy personnel of World War II Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States) Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Silver Star People from Madison County, Texas United States Naval Academy alumni United States Navy vice admirals United States submarine commanders United States Navy Inspectors General People from Sierra Vista, Arizona Military personnel from Texas Burials at sea