Michael Christian Colley, USN (Ret.), (February 19, 1938 – January 19, 2013) was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

officer who served as vice admiral and whose career included several high-ranking commands in the submarine force and elsewhere in national security positions.Thompson, Steven (April 1991
"Sea Cliff (DSV 4)"
'' All Hands''. Retrieved February 1, 2023.

Early life

Colley was born in Wheaton, Minnesota, on February 19, 1938."Sub Squandron Two command changed"
'' The Day'', July 28, 1984.

Military career

Colley graduated with distinction from the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...

in June 1960. He had sea duty assignments on several nuclear-powered

submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...

s and was Commanding Officer of the

attack submarine An attack submarine or hunter-killer submarine is a submarine specifically designed for the purpose of attacking and sinking other submarines, surface combatants, and merchant vessels. In the Soviet Navy, Soviet and Russian Navy, Russian navies ...

. He was Commander of the Navy Recruiting Command for three years, and Deputy Commander of the submarine directorate in

the Pentagon The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense, in Arlington County, Virginia, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. The building was constructed on an accelerated schedule during World War II. As ...

. He earned a master's degree in Computer Systems from the

Naval Postgraduate School Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a Naval command with a graduate university mission, operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California. The NPS mission is to provide "defense-focused graduate education, including clas ...

. Other operational assignments included command of the

submarine tender A submarine tender, in British English a submarine depot ship, is a type of depot ship that supplies and supports submarines. Development Submarines are small compared to most oceangoing vessels, and generally cannot carry large amounts of foo ...

Guam Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...

and the

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

's largest submarine squadron in

Groton, Connecticut Groton ( ) is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States, located on the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River. It is the home of General Dynamics Electric Boat, which is the major contractor for submarine work for the United St ...

. During the first

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

, he was

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

of the Pacific Fleet submarine force of over 40 boats from his headquarters at

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...

. Earlier, he was Director, Division of Mathematics and Science (including the departments of math, physics, chemistry, oceanography and computer science) at the

Naval Academy A naval academy provides education for prospective naval officers. List of naval academies See also

* Military academy {{Authority control Naval academies, Naval lists ...

Activism and views

After leaving the navy, Colley was active in the national security policy and analysis field, intelligence evaluation and senior management level positions in the public sector. He joined the Libertarian Party in 2003 and served as an elected member of the

Libertarian National Committee The Libertarian National Committee (LNC) controls and manages the affairs, properties, and funds of the United States Libertarian Party. It is composed of the party officers, five at-large representatives elected every two years at the national co ...

from 2004 to 2010. Colley always advocated that the purpose of the United States military was defense and "not to serve as the world policeman," or "build democracy or engage in nation-building." Colley was interested in civil liberties issues and opposed government regulation "of all facets of our lives." On immigration, he welcomed people coming to the United States to "enjoy the freedoms we have" and opposed building a fence on the U.S.-Mexico border.

Death

Admiral Colley died unexpectedly at his home in Gulf Shores, Alabama on January 19, 2013. The ashes of Colley and his wife Arlen Carol Colley (1938–2001) were interred at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

References

External links

Submarine Force Pacific Fleet

Libertarian Party of Alabama : Colley
{{DEFAULTSORT:Colley, Michael 1938 births 2013 deaths Alabama Libertarians Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Military personnel from Minnesota Naval Postgraduate School alumni People from Gulf Shores, Alabama People from Traverse County, Minnesota United States Naval Academy alumni United States Navy vice admirals United States submarine commanders