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, ...

William John Flanagan Jr. (born March 27, 1943) 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 ...

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 Commander in Chief,

United States Atlantic Fleet United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...

from 1994 to 1996.

Early life and education

Flanagan was born in 1943 in Jesup, Georgia. In addition to his bachelor's degree in marine transportation, Flanagan received a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

degree in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

from the

American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...

in 1974 and graduated from

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...

in 1980.

Naval career

Flanagan graduated from the Massachusetts Maritime Academy in 1964 with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree in marine transportation and an ensign's commission in the Naval Reserve, joining the Merchant Marine and working for American Export-Isbrandtsen Lines out of New York, where he achieved the grade of second mate. After three years of service with American Export Lines, Flanagan reported for active duty with the

on May 15, 1967 as a lieutenant (junior grade). On June 27, 1981, Flanagan reported to commissioning crew of as the ship's first

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 ...

. He had now advanced to the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

. Flannagan commanded the guided missile destroyer—the lead ship of her class—on her first deployment to the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean. On October 5, 1994, Flanagan was promoted to the rank of admiral and was assigned as Commander in Chief of the Atlantic Fleet. At the end of his tenure in this position, he was responsible for more than 200,000 Navy and Marine Corps personnel, 220 vessels, 1,500 aircraft, and 27 shore installations. Flanagan stepped down from commanding the Atlantic Fleet on December 20, 1996, and retired shortly thereafter after approximately thirty years of naval service.

Military awards

;U.S. Military decorations

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flanagan, William J. Jr. 1943 births Living people People from Jesup, Georgia Massachusetts Maritime Academy alumni United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War American University alumni Harvard Business School alumni Recipients of the Meritorious Service Medal (United States) Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Navy admirals Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal