William Evans "Bill" Gortney (born September 25, 1955) 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 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 ...

who served as the sixth commander of

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 the 23rd commander of

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). He previously served as the Commander,

United States Fleet Forces Command The United States Fleet Forces Command (USFF) is a service component command of the United States Navy that provides naval forces to a wide variety of U.S. forces. The naval resources may be allocated to Combatant Commanders such as United Sta ...

from September 14, 2012 to December 2014 and

Director of the Joint Staff The director of the Joint Staff (DJS) is a three-star officer who assists the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a cabinet of senior military officers within the United States Armed Forces who advise the secretary of defense and the president on military ...

from July 1, 2010 to August 2012. Prior to that, he served as Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/

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 ...

. He assumed his post as CDRUSNORTHCOM and commander of NORAD on December 5, 2014, and was succeeded by General Lori Robinson on May 13, 2016.

Early life and education

Gortney was born on September 25, 1955, and graduated from Elon College (now

Elon University Elon University is a private university in Elon, North Carolina. Founded in 1889 as Elon College, Elon is organized into six schools, most of which offer bachelor's degrees and several of which offer master's degrees or professional doctora ...

) in

North Carolina North Carolina () is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 28th largest and List of states and territories of the United ...

, earning a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

in History and

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 ...

in 1977. He was an officer of

Kappa Sigma Kappa Sigma (), commonly known as Kappa Sig, is an American collegiate social fraternity founded at the University of Virginia in 1869. Kappa Sigma is one of the five largest international fraternities with currently 318 active chapters and col ...

fraternity and a member of the varsity soccer team and the rugby club. The son of a retired

captain and a second generation

Naval Aviator Naval aviation is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. Naval aviation is typically projected to a position nearer the target by way of an aircraft carrier. Carrier-bas ...

, Gortney entered the United States Navy as an aviation

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...

candidate at Aviation Officer Candidate School (AOCS, Class 12–77

he Gamesmen He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...

in the summer of 1977 at NAS Pensacola, Florida.

Career

Gortney received his commission in the

United States Naval Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2005, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called Reservists, are categorized as being in either the Sel ...

in September 1977 and earned his wings of gold and designation as a Naval Aviator following graduation from the jet strike pilot training pipeline in December 1978. Shore assignments include Training Squadron 26 (VT-26), NAS Chase Field,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

, 1978–1980; Strike Fighter Squadron 125 (VFA-125),

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, 1984–1988, and aide and flag lieutenant to the Assistant

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 ...

(Air Warfare),

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, 1990–1991. He is a 1996 graduate of the

Naval War College The Naval War College (NWC or NAVWARCOL) is the staff college and "Home of Thought" for the United States Navy at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. The NWC educates and develops leaders, supports defining the future Navy and associ ...

, earning 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 ...

in International Security Affairs. Additional command tours include Strike Fighter Squadron 15 (VFA-15), 1994–1995, on board , and VFA-106, the East Coast F/A-18 Fleet Replacement Squadron,

NAS Cecil Field Naval Air Station Cecil Field or NAS Cecil Field was a United States Navy air base, located in Duval County, Florida. Prior to October 1999, NAS Cecil Field was the largest military base in terms of acreage in the Jacksonville, Florida area. NA ...

, Florida, 1996–1997. Fleet assignments include Attack Squadron 82 (VA-82), 1981–1984, on board ; VFA-87, 1988–1990, on board USS ''Theodore Roosevelt''; executive officer, VFA-132, 1991–1992, on board and executive officer, VFA-15, 1992–1994, on board USS ''Theodore Roosevelt''. In 2015, Gortney ordered "recruiting centers, reserve centers and ROTC facilities to increase surveillance and take basic steps such as closing blinds at the offices," in response to an armed shooting in Tennessee that resulted in the deaths of five US servicemen.

Flag assignments

Gortney's first flag tour was as the Deputy Chief of Staff for Global Force Management and Joint Operations,

Fleet Forces Command The United States Fleet Forces Command (USFF) is a service component command of the United States Navy that provides naval forces to a wide variety of U.S. forces. The naval resources may be allocated to Combatant Commanders such as United Stat ...

, Norfolk, Virginia, 2004–2006. This was followed by assignment as Commander,

Carrier Strike Group 10 Carrier Strike Group 10, abbreviated as CSG-10 or CARSTRKGRU 10, is a U.S. Navy carrier strike group. Carrier strike groups gain and maintain sea control as well as project naval airpower ashore. , CSG-10 consist of , the strike group's current ...

, during which time he was promoted to a two-star

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 rega ...

. Appointed for promotion to vice admiral, he was then assigned as Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command /

U.S. 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 ...

/ Combined Maritime Forces. This was Gortney's third command tour in the

U.S. Central Command The United States Central Command (USCENTCOM or CENTCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the U.S. Department of Defense. It was established in 1983, taking over the previous responsibilities of the Rapid Deployment Joint Tas ...

(USCENTCOM) area of operations, supporting Maritime Security Operations and combat operations for

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used synonymously by the U.S. government for both the War in Afghanistan (2001–2014) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response to the September 11 a ...

and

Operation Iraqi Freedom {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...

. His previous command assignments in the USCENTCOM area of operations include Command of

Carrier Air Wing 7 Carrier Air Wing Seven (CVW-7) is a United States Navy aircraft carrier air wing based at Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia. At the moment, CVW-7 is assigned to the USS George H. W. Bush. The tail code of aircraft assigned to CVW-7 is AG. Mis ...

while he was still a captain, embarked aboard , in direct support of OEF in 2002. His second was as Commander,

Carrier Strike Group Ten Carrier Strike Group 10, abbreviated as CSG-10 or CARSTRKGRU 10, is a U.S. Navy carrier strike group. Carrier strike groups gain and maintain sea control as well as project naval airpower ashore. , CSG-10 consist of , the strike group's current ...

, on board , in support of Maritime Security Operations and OIF from 2007–2008. Gortney's experience in the

United States Central Command The United States Central Command (USCENTCOM or CENTCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the U.S. Department of Defense. It was established in 1983, taking over the previous responsibilities of the Rapid Deployment Joint Ta ...

area of operations includes serving on the Joint Staff, J-33 Joint Operations Department CENTCOM Division (JODCENT) from 1998–1999, and tours supporting the violent peace of

Operation Southern Watch Operation Southern Watch was an air-centric military operation conducted by the United States Department of Defense from Summer 1992 to Spring 2003. United States Central Command's Joint Task Force Southwest Asia (JTF-SWA) had the mission of mon ...

from 2000–2001 as Deputy for Current Operations,

Joint Task Force Southwest Asia A joint or articulation (or articular surface) is the connection made between bones, ossicles, or other hard structures in the body which link an animal's skeletal system into a functional whole.Saladin, Ken. Anatomy & Physiology. 7th ed. McGraw- ...

(JTF-SWA) at

Eskan Village Eskan Village, officially named Eskan Village Compound, is a U.S. military compound located 20 kilometers south-east of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The base is home to the United States Military Training Mission in Saudi Arabia (USMTM), Office of the Pr ...

, Saudi Arabia, and deploying as Deputy Commander,

, on board . He also served as Chief, Naval and Amphibious Liaison Element (NALE) to the Combined Forces Air Component Commander, U.S. Central Command, at

Prince Sultan Air Base Prince Sultan Air Base ( ar, قاعدة الأمير سلطان الجوية) (PSAB) is a military air base located in the closed-city of Al Kharj, Saudi Arabia. History There was formerly a large United States presence there during Opera ...

, Saudi Arabia, for the opening months of the

2003 invasion of Iraq The 2003 invasion of Iraq was a United States-led invasion of the Republic of Iraq and the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion phase began on 19 March 2003 (air) and 20 March 2003 (ground) and lasted just over one month, including ...

, followed as Chief of Staff for Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command / U.S. 5th Fleet in Bahrain from 2003–2004. Gortney has flown over 5,360 flight hours and 1,265 carrier-arrested landings, primarily in the A-7E Corsair II and the

F/A-18 Hornet The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is an all-weather, twin-engine, supersonic, carrier-capable, multirole combat aircraft, designed as both a fighter and attack aircraft (hence the F/A designation). Designed by McDonnell Douglas (now pa ...

Awards and decorations

Medals and ribbons

References

, - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Gortney, William E. 1955 births Elon University alumni Living people Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal United States Navy admirals