Philip Scot Davidson (born August 24, 1960) is a retired four-star

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 ...

in the

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 ...

who last served as the 25th commander of

United States Indo-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, ...

from May 30, 2018 to April 30, 2021. He previously served as the

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

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 ...

and United States Naval Forces Northern Command from 2014 to 2018. Davidson is from St. Louis, Missouri, and is a 1982 graduate of 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 ...

. He retired from the U.S. Navy effective May 1, 2021. On April 24, 2018, the Senate Armed Services Committee confirmed Davidson to succeed Admiral Harry B. Harris Jr. as the commander of

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, ...

. The change of command ceremony happened on May 30, 2018. On that same day, United States Pacific Command was renamed to United States Indo-Pacific Command. When Admiral Kurt W. Tidd retired, Davidson received the title of "Old Salt", conferred upon the longest-serving surface warfare officer in the U.S. Navy. Davidson relinquished the title to Admiral

Christopher W. Grady Christopher Watson Grady (born November 28, 1962) is a United States Navy admiral who serves as the 12th vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff since December 20, 2021. He most recently served as the commander of United States Fleet Forces ...

upon his retirement.

Naval career

A surface warfare officer, Davidson has deployed across the globe in frigates, destroyers, cruisers, and aircraft carriers. Davidson's previous command assignments include Carrier Strike Group 8 ('' Eisenhower'' Carrier Strike Group), , and . He also served as the commander of United States Sixth Fleet and the commander of Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO, while simultaneously serving as the deputy commander of

United States Naval Forces Europe – Naval Forces Africa United States Naval Forces Europe and Africa (NAVEUR-NAVAF), is the United States Navy component command of the United States European Command and United States Africa Command. Prior to 2020, NAVEUR-NAVAF was previously referred to as United States ...

. Ashore, Davidson has served in fleet, interagency, and joint tours as a flag officer; he was previously the director of maritime operations at United States Fleet Forces Command, the senior military advisor to the special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan (SRAP) at the

State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other na ...

, and the deputy director for strategy and policy in the J-5 directorate of the Joint Staff. He served earlier in his career in policy, strategy, and operations billets on multiple tours with the U.S. Pacific Fleet staff, the Navy staff, and the Joint Staff, and as the Navy’s military aide to the

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice p ...

. Davidson is a distinguished graduate of the

United States 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 associa ...

. He has 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 national security and strategic studies and 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 o ...

in physics.

Role in the USS ''Roosevelt'' coronavirus outbreak

On 5 March 2020, Davidson ordered the aircraft carrier to conduct its long-scheduled visit to

Da Nang Nang or DanangSee also Danang Dragons ( ; vi, Đà Nẵng, ) is a class-1 municipality and the fifth-largest city in Vietnam by municipal population. It lies on the coast of the East Sea of Vietnam at the mouth of the Hàn River, and is on ...

, Vietnam. The port call was politically important, to show United States military strength in a region increasingly unnerved by Beijing's growing territorial claims in the South China Sea. However, nearly three weeks prior, on 14 February, the United States Navy had ordered all ships in the Indo-Pacific region that had made port calls to quarantine at sea for at least 14 days, the maximum incubation period for the novel coronavirus. The navy also directed the Seventh Fleet headquarters in Yokosuka, Japan to screen everyone accessing the fleet's warships and aircraft. Davidson chose to accept the risk of possible coronavirus infections, and allow the visit to proceed. Within days of completing the port call, sailors aboard the ''Roosevelt'' began testing positive for the coronavirus. By 13 April, nearly 600 sailors had tested positive, with one death, 4000 sailors had been evacuated from the ship, and the ship's commander, Captain

Brett Crozier Brett Elliott Crozier (born February 24, 1970) is a retired captain in the United States Navy. A United States Naval Academy graduate, he became a naval aviator, first flying helicopters and then switching to fighters. After completing naval nu ...

, had been relieved of command.

Awards and decorations

References

External links

America's Navy > Biographies > Admiral Philip Davidson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davidson, Philip Scot 1960 births Living people United States Naval Academy alumni Naval War College alumni United States Navy personnel of the Gulf War Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal United States Navy admirals