Timothy John Keating (born November 16, 1948) is a retired

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 ...

admiral. During his career, he served as commander of Carrier Group Five, the

United States 5th 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 ...

, the

United States Northern Command United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) is one of eleven unified combatant commands of the United States Department of Defense. The command is tasked with providing military support for non-military authorities in the U.S., and protect ...

and

North American Aerospace Defense Command North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD ), known until March 1981 as the North American Air Defense Command, is a combined organization of the United States and Canada that provides aerospace warning, air sovereignty, and protection ...

(NORAD), and

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, ...

. He retired in 2009 after more than 38 years of service. He was the first navy officer to head Northern Command and NORAD.

Early life

Keating was born on November 16, 1948, in

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater D ...

Naval career

Keating graduated from 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 ...

in 1971. Following duty aboard in the western

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...

, he completed flight training in August 1973 and was designated as a Naval Aviator. He then served in Attack Squadron 82 ( VA-82), flying the

A-7 Corsair II The LTV A-7 Corsair II is an American carrier-capable subsonic light attack aircraft designed and manufactured by Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV). The A-7 was developed during the early 1960s as replacement for the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk. Its design w ...

, deploying twice to the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...

aboard . In September 1978, Keating joined Attack Squadron 122 ( VA-122) at

NAS Lemoore Naval Air Station Lemoore or NAS Lemoore is a United States Navy base, located in Kings County and Fresno County, California, United States. Lemoore Station, a census-designated place, is located inside the base's borders. NAS Lemoore is the Na ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, and later served with Carrier Air Wing FIFTEEN (CVW-15) as Staff Landing Signal Officer, embarking aboard and deploying to the Western Pacific/Indian Ocean. From May 1982 to July 1984, as Administrative Officer, Operations Officer and Maintenance Officer of Attack Squadron 94 ( VA-94), Keating deployed twice to the Western Pacific aboard . His next assignment was Aide and Flag Lieutenant to the Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Command. In May 1987, after having transitioned to the F/A-18 Hornet and previously serving as squadron executive officer, Keating assumed command of Strike Fighter Squadron 87 ( VFA-87) and deployed with Carrier Air Wing EIGHT (CVW-8) aboard to the North Atlantic and to the Mediterranean. After his tour with VFA-87, he served as Head of the Aviation Junior Officer Assignments Branch of the Naval Military Personnel Command 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, ...

He next served as Deputy Commander, Carrier Air Wing SEVENTEEN (CVW-17) in January 1991, participating in combat operations in support of

Operation Desert Storm Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...

from . Keating then became a Chief of Naval Operations Fellow with the

Strategic Studies Group Strategic Studies Group (SSG) is an Australian software development company that makes primarily strategy wargames. The company was founded by strategy game enthusiasts Ian Trout and Roger Keating. Trout was proprietor of a military books sto ...

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and northeast of New Yor ...

. Following duty with the Joint Task Force Southwest Asia in

Riyadh Riyadh (, ar, الرياض, 'ar-Riyāḍ, lit.: 'The Gardens' Najdi pronunciation: ), formerly known as Hajr al-Yamamah, is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of th ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

, he deployed as Deputy Commander, Carrier Air Wing NINE (CVW-9) aboard to the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...

, assuming command of CVW-9 in July 1993. In November 1994, Admiral Keating became Commander of the

Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center The Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center (NAWDC, pronounced NAW-DIK) was formerly known as the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center (NSAWC, pronounced "EN-SOCK") at Naval Air Station Fallon located in the city of Fallon in western Neva ...

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Keating returned to the Naval Military Personnel Command in September 1995 as Director, Aviation Officer Distribution Division (Pers 43). He then served as the deputy director for Operations (Current Operations/J33), with the Operations Directorate of the

Joint Staff The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is the body of the most senior uniformed leaders within the United States Department of Defense, that advises the president of the United States, the secretary of defense, the Homeland Security Council and the ...

(JS J-3) in Washington, D.C., from August 1996 until June 1998. He assumed command of Carrier Group Five, home ported in

Yokosuka, Japan is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region. The city ...

, in June 1998, embarking aboard both and . In September 2000, Admiral Keating reported to OPNAV in Washington as Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Plans, Policy and Operations (N3/N5). In February 2002, he assumed command of

United States Naval Forces Central Command United States Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) is the United States Navy element of United States Central Command (USCENTCOM). Its area of responsibility includes the Red Sea, Gulf of Oman, Persian Gulf, and Arabian Sea. It consists of the ...

and

United States 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 ...

in Manama, Bahrain. From October 13, 2003, to October 21, 2004, Keating served as the Director, Joint Staff. Keating commanded of

and the

from 5 November 2004 to 23 March 2007. Keating became Commander,

on 26 March 2007.McAvoy, Audrey (27 March 2007) "Keating officially becomes top U.S. military commander in Pacific" Associated Press State & Local Wire He served as ComPac until 19 October 2009, just before his retirement.

Awards and decorations

Keating's awards include: He also has over 5,000 flight hours and 1,200 arrested landings.

Personal

Keating married Wanda Lee Doerksen. He has two stepchildren.

Notes

References

*
United States Pacific Command
{{DEFAULTSORT:Keating, Timothy J. 1948 births Living people Military personnel from Dayton, Ohio United States Naval Academy alumni United States Naval Aviators United States Navy personnel of the Gulf War Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Navy admirals Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal North American Aerospace Defense Command 20th-century American naval officers 21st-century American naval officers Recipients of the Humanitarian Service Medal