Admiral Stanley Roger Arthur, USN (born September 27, 1935) was the

Vice Chief of Naval Operations The vice chief of naval operations (VCNO) is the second highest-ranking commissioned United States Navy officer in the Department of the Navy and functions as the principal deputy of the chief of naval operations and by statute, the vice chief ...

from 1992 to 1995, culminating more than 37 years as an officer 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 ...

Military career

Admiral Arthur was born in

Jackson, Ohio Jackson is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Ohio, United States approximately 27 mi (43 km) SE of Chillicothe. The population was 6,239 at the 2020 census. History Established in 1817, residents named the ...

, and was commissioned in U.S. Navy through the

Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps The Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC) program is a college-based, commissioned officer training program of the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps. Origins A pilot Naval Reserve unit was established in September 1 ...

Program in June 1957. Following completion of flight training, he was designated as a

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 ...

in 1958. Arthur flew more than 500 combat missions in the

A-4 Skyhawk The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk is a single-seat subsonic carrier-capable light attack aircraft developed for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps in the early 1950s. The delta-winged, single turbojet engined Skyhawk was designed ...

during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

, receiving 11 separate awards of the Distinguished Flying Cross and over 50 separate awards of the

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

, making him one of the most highly decorated combat aviators of that conflict. During the 1970s and 1980s, he also held command of a carrier-based attack squadron, a carrier air wing, an aircraft carrier, a carrier battle group ( Carrier Group 7), and was Deputy Chief of Naval Operations (Logistics) (OP-O4). In December 1990, then-Vice Admiral Arthur took command of the

United States Seventh Fleet The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of ...

, headquartered in Japan. At the time, the Seventh Fleet staff also had oversight of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (USNAVCENT) in Bahrain and was forward deployed in 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 bo ...

. Thus, Vice Admiral Arthur oversaw the U.S. Navy buildup for the

Persian Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

which broke out on 17 January 1991. He directed the operations of more than 96,000 Navy and Marine Corps personnel and 130 U.S. Navy and Allied ships. This represented the largest U.S. naval armada amassed since World War II. He continued directing U.S. Naval Forces Central Command until April 1991. On 24 April 1991, Vice Admiral Arthur turned over command of NAVCENT to Rear Admiral Ray Taylor, Fogerty's replacement as Commander,

Middle East Force 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 Arthur and ''Blue Ridge'' began their voyage back to the Pacific. Arthur then returned to

Yokosuka 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 ...

to take up Seventh Fleet duties once more. He continued to command Seventh Fleet until July 1992. Admiral Arthur assumed duties as the Vice Chief of Naval Operations on 6 July 1992. He retired from active military service on 1 June 1995. In that job as the Navy's number two officer, he was also the Navy's most senior

immediately after the 1991

Tailhook Incident The Tailhook scandal was a military scandal in which United States Navy and U.S. Marine Corps aviation officers were alleged to have sexually assaulted up to 83 women and seven men, or otherwise engaged in "improper and indecent" conduct at the ...

. Admiral Arthur was nominated by President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...

to head U.S. military forces in the Pacific as the prospective 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, ...

, but the nomination was withdrawn after Senator Dave Durenberger (R-Minnesota), questioned Arthur's handling of sexual harassment allegations brought by one of the Senator's constituents, a female Navy student helicopter pilot, then-

Ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

Rebecca Hansen Rebecca, ; Syriac: , ) from the Hebrew (lit., 'connection'), from Semitic root , 'to tie, couple or join', 'to secure', or 'to snare') () appears in the Hebrew Bible as the wife of Isaac and the mother of Jacob and Esau. According to biblical ...

, who was attrited from flight training. Rather than let the Pacific fleet job go unfilled during what might have been protracted congressional hearings, Arthur elected to retire from the Navy on February 1, 1995, as a four-star admiral. Critics charged that the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral

Mike Boorda Jeremy Michael Boorda (November 26, 1939 – May 16, 1996) was a United States Navy admiral who served as the 25th Chief of Naval Operations. Boorda is notable as the first person to have risen from the enlisted ranks to become Chief of Naval Op ...

, a non-aviator, sacrificed Arthur to improve the Navy's image on sexual harassment following the

. The volume of complaints prompted Boorda to issue an unusual public defense of Arthur and his decision not to fight for the nomination:

Stan Arthur is an officer of integrity... who chose to take this selfless action... in the interests of more rapidly filling a critical leadership position. Those who postulate other reasons for the withdrawal are simply wrong.

After military

Arthur joined

Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American aerospace, arms, defense, information security, and technology corporation with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It ...

in 1996 and was appointed President, Missiles and Fire Control –

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures re ...

, in July 1999.

Education

Arthur is a graduate of

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the ...

in Oxford, Ohio. He later earned a second bachelor's degree in

aeronautical engineering Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is sim ...

from the U.S.

Naval Postgraduate School The Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a public graduate school operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California. It offers master’s and doctoral degrees in more than 70 fields of study to the U.S. Armed Forces, DOD c ...

and received his master's degree in administration from

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , presi ...

Awards and decorations

In 1996 Arthur received the Admiral

Arleigh A. Burke Arleigh Albert Burke (October 19, 1901 – January 1, 1996) was an admiral of the United States Navy who distinguished himself during World War II and the Korean War, and who served as Chief of Naval Operations during the Eisenhower and Kenned ...

Leadership Award from the Navy League. He was inducted into the

Naval Aviation Hall of Honor The United States Naval Aviation Hall of Honor, located at the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida, recognizes individuals "who by their actions or achievements made outstanding contributions to Naval Aviation." Since its inception ...

in 2008. He also received the

Gray Eagle Award The Gray Eagle Award is presented to the Naval Aviator on continuous active duty in U.S. Navy or Marine Corps who has held that designation for the longest period of time. A similar trophy, the Gray Owl Award, is also presented to the Naval Fligh ...

. The Admiral Stan Arthur Award For Logistics Excellence is presented annually in his honor, and recognizes military and civilian logisticians who epitomize excellence in logistics planning and execution.Admiral Stanley R. Arthur Award
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arthur, Stanley R. 1935 births Living people People from Jackson, Ohio Miami University alumni United States Navy officers United States Naval Aviators United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) United States Navy personnel of the Gulf War Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal Vice Chiefs of Naval Operations People from San Diego Military personnel from California