Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

Sir Richard George Alison Fitch, (2 June 1929 – 15 February 1994) was a senior

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

officer who served as Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel from 1986 to 1988.

Naval career

Educated at Royal Naval College Dartmouth, Fitch joined the

as a cadet in 1942.Obituary: Admiral Sir Richard Fitch
''The Independent'', 22 February 1994 Fitch was made

Commanding Officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

of the

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

in 1966 and then joined the staff of the Flag Officer Second-in-Command for the

Far East Fleet The Far East Fleet (also called the Far East Station) was a fleet of the Royal Navy which existed between 1952 and 1971. During the Second World War, the Eastern Fleet included many ships and personnel from other navies, including those of the ...

in 1967. He was made commander of the

in 1973 and then became Naval Assistant to the First Sea Lord in 1974. Fitch was made captain of 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 1976 and Director of Naval Warfare at the

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

in 1978. He went on to be

Naval Secretary The Naval Secretary is the Royal Navy officer who advises the First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff on naval officer appointing (and General Officers). Their counterpart in the British Army is the Military Secretary. The Royal Air Force equiv ...

in 1980 and Flag Officer Third Flotilla in 1983. He was made Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel as well as President of the

Royal Naval College, Greenwich The Royal Naval College, Greenwich, was a Royal Navy training establishment between 1873 and 1998, providing courses for naval officers. It was the home of the Royal Navy's staff college, which provided advanced training for officers. The equiv ...

in 1986, and retired in 1988. In retirement Fitch became a

Lloyd's Lloyd's of London, generally known simply as Lloyd's, is an insurance and reinsurance market located in London, England. Unlike most of its competitors in the industry, it is not an insurance company; rather, Lloyd's is a corporate body gove ...

name. Facing large underwriting losses, he committed suicide by

carbon monoxide poisoning Carbon monoxide poisoning typically occurs from breathing in carbon monoxide (CO) at excessive levels. Symptoms are often described as "flu-like" and commonly include headache, dizziness, weakness, vomiting, chest pain, and confusion. Large e ...

in his car.

Family

In 1969 Fitch married Kathleen Marie-Louise Igert; they went on to have one son.Debrett's People of Today 1994

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Fitch, Richard 1929 births 1994 deaths Admiral presidents of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Lords of the Admiralty Military personnel from London Royal Navy admirals Royal Navy officers of World War II