Huntington Hardisty (February 3, 1929 – October 1, 2003) was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

four star admiral Military star ranking is military terminology, used to describe General officer, general and flag officers. Within Member states of NATO, NATO's armed forces, the stars are equal to Ranks and insignia of NATO, OF-6–10. Star ranking One–star ...

who served as

Vice Chief of Naval Operations 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 ...

(VCNO) from 1987 to 1988; and Commander in Chief,

United States Pacific Command United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) is a unified combatant command of the United States Armed Forces responsible for the Indo-Pacific region. Formerly known as United States Pacific Command (USPACOM) since its inception in 1947, t ...

(USCINCPAC) from 1988 to 1991. Hardisty was offered a Major League Baseball contract with the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

but opted for a scholarship to the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

. He later transferred 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 ...

where he played football.ADM Huntington Hardisty 1929-2003, Wings of Gold magazine
/ref> After graduation in 1952, he attended pilot training and earned his wings in 1953. As a test pilot in 1961, he set a low level speed record in an F4H-1 Phantom II of 900 miles per hour at 125 feet above the ground, a record which remained unbroken for 16 years.Honolulu Advertiser & Star-Bulletin Obituaries, January 1 - December 31, 2003, H
The actual F4H-1 'Sageburner' is now in storage at the

National Air and Space Museum The National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, also called the Air and Space Museum, is a museum in Washington, D.C., in the United States. Established in 1946 as the National Air Museum, it opened its main building on the Nat ...

in Washington D.C. Headstone of Huntington Hardisty

His assignments included command of

Carrier Air Wing Eleven Carrier Air Wing Eleven (CVW-11) is a United States Navy aircraft carrier air wing based at Naval Air Station Lemoore, California. The air wing is attached to the aircraft carrier .USS Savannah (AOR-4) and USS Oriskany (CVA-34). As a flag officer he was

President of the Naval War College The president of the Naval War College is a flag officer in the United States Navy. The President's House, Naval War College, President's House in Newport, Rhode Island is their official residence. The office of the president was created along ...

, commanded the

U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay Naval Base Subic Bay was a major ship-repair, supply, and rest and recreation facility of the Spanish Navy and subsequently the United States Navy located in Zambales, Philippines. The base was 262 square miles, about the size of Singapore. Th ...

in the Philippines; commanded Carrier Strike Force Seventh Fleet; and served as Director for Operations, Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Deputy and Chief of Staff, United States Pacific Command; Vice Chief of Naval Operations; and Commander in Chief, United States Pacific Command. He also 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 ...

. He was one of the technical directors for the movie ''

Hunt for Red October ''The Hunt for Red October'' is the debut novel by American author Tom Clancy, first published on October 1, 1984, by the Naval Institute Press. It depicts Soviet Union, Soviet submarine captain Marko Ramius as he seemingly goes rogue with his ...

''. After retiring from the Navy in 1991, he was a board member of several corporations and served as president of Kaman Aerospace International in Connecticut. He belonged to numerous organizations, including the Association of Naval Aviation, and served as chairman of the U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association. Admiral Hardisty died on October 1, 2003 in Hartford, Connecticut at the age of 74. He was later interred on December 5, 2003, in

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

Awards and decorations

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hardisty, Huntington 1929 births 2003 deaths United States Navy admirals United States Naval Academy alumni United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War United States Naval Aviators Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Presidents of the Naval War College Vice Chiefs of Naval Operations Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Distinguished Service Order (Vietnam) 20th-century American academics