Dewey's first Commanding Officer

Zumwalt, Elmo R., Jr.
(20 Nov. 1920-2 Jan. 2000)

 

Born 20 November 1920 in San Francisco, Elmo Zumwalt graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1942. His extensive World War II service included combat off Guadalcanal and the Philippines. Over the next two decades Zumwalt saw further action during the Korean War, served shore tours at the Naval and National War Colleges, and took command in 1959 of the Navy's first ship designed to carry guided missiles, the frigate Dewey. By 1964 Zumwalt was senior aide to Secretary of the Navy Paul Nitze and shared his chief's skepticism about the growing U.S. commitment to the war in Southeast Asia. Both viewed the Soviet armaments buildup as more challenging to America's vital interests. In 1965 Zumwalt became the youngest rear admiral in the Navy's history; the next year, he headed up the newly created Division of Systems Analysis.

In September 1968 Zumwalt was detailed to the post of commander, U.S. Naval Forces in Vietnam and the Naval Advisory Group, Vietnam, a position often viewed as a dead-end job-a "brown-water" post in a "blue-water" navy. Zumwalt was tasked with interdicting Communist waterborne logistics traffic in the Mekong Delta, cooperating with Allied ground troops in the area, and turning over the burden of the naval war to the South Vietnamese.


RDAM. Elmo Zumwalt; commander of U.S. riverine warfare units in South Vietnam (1968-1970). Zumwalt moved with vigor to execute all three charges. To cut Communist logistical support, Zumwalt supplemented the existing MARKET TIME patrols with strikes by small craft (Operation GIANT SLINGSHOT) against supplies coming down the backwaters from Cambodia. To assist Allied soldiers, Zumwalt provided shallow-draft landing craft in support of the U.S. Army's 9th Division. To execute his command's role in Vietnamization, Zumwalt organized a program dubbed "ACTOV" (Accelerated Turnover to the Vietnamese), with special emphasis on cooperation between American and South Vietnamese naval personnel. He set a personal example by his close relationship with Commodore Tran Van Chon, the head of the Republic of Vietnam Navy.

Zumwalt's performance in this demanding position was so impressive that his Vietnamese tour ended abruptly on 12 April 1970, when he was summoned to Washington to begin a four-year assignment as chief of naval operations (CNO). Sworn in on 1 July 1970, Zumwalt became the youngest officer to hold the Navy's top job and the rank of full admiral.

In his new position Zumwalt perforce turned to larger issues, such as the reform of personnel policies and the Navy's fading ability to confront a rapidly expanding Soviet fleet. Still, as CNO, Zumwalt continued to exert an influence on the Vietnamese struggle, especially during the Easter Offensive of 1972, when he strongly advocated the mining of Hai Phong harbor. Following the war, Zumwalt became involved as a private citizen in humanitarian concerns related to the Vietnam struggle, managing, for instance, to secure the release from captivity of Tran Van Chon, but most conspicuously in serving as a spokesman for U.S. servicemen suffering from exposure to the herbicide Agent Orange.

 

Photo: Elmo Zumwalt

 

 

 

First ship of the century will be named after Admiral Zumwalt

 
Official Navy News

News Release

 

Contact: Captain Woody Berzins
(646) 557-7317

 

                                                                           July 4, 2000

New ship class after Admiral Zumwalt 

during INR 2000 ceremonies on JFK

 

Addressing guests aboard the USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67) during International Naval Review 2000 ceremonies, the President announced on July 4 that the Navy will honor Navy Admiral Elmo R. "Bud" Zumwalt Jr., by naming its 21st Century Land Attack Destroyer (DD 21) after him. Zumwalt, who became the youngest man ever to serve as chief of Naval Operations (CNO) in 1970, passed away in Durham, N.C., on Jan. 2, 2000. Appropriately, this class of 32 future warships will embody Zumwalt's visionary leadership and well-known reputation as a Navy reformer.

Entering the fleet at the end of this decade, USS Zumwalt will usher in the Navy's newest class of destroyers. These revolutionary warships are being designed to meet post-Cold War requirements using 21st century naval warfare concepts. The Zumwalt class will incorporate several advanced technologies and introduce a number of design features to improve the DD 21 sailor's quality of life. 

Armed with an array of land attack weapons, USS Zumwalt will be capable of delivering an unprecedented level of offensive firepower from the sea. It will also be the first U.S. Navy ship to be powered and propelled by a fully integrated power system, including modern electric drive. The cruiser-sized Zumwalt will be manned by a crew approaching one hundred and will feature new habitability standards and shipboard amenities, including staterooms for the entire ship's company.

"DD 21 will be a platform that values its crew more than any other ship on which sailors have ever lived, fought, and worked," said Secretary of the Navy Richard Danzig. "It is a fitting tribute to the legacy of Admiral Bud Zumwalt."

Zumwalt was born in San Francisco in 1920 and grew up in Tulare, Calif. He was a cum laude graduate of the United States Naval Academy. After service as the commander of U.S. Naval Forces in Vietnam from 1968-1970, at age 49, he became the youngest four-star admiral in the history of the U. S. Navy. As CNO, Zumwalt initiated wide-ranging reforms in a dramatic effort to revitalize the Navy. Time magazine hailed Zumwalt as "the Navy's most popular leader since World War II." As the Navy's senior officer, he increased the war fighting capabilities of the dwindling U.S. fleet by outfitting remaining ships with more efficient and sophisticated weapons. In 1974, he retired as CNO and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. In 1996, he took over as chairman of the Board of the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation.

In addition to numerous decorations received from the U.S. Navy, including the Navy Distinguished Service Medal (three awards), the Legion of Merit (two awards), and Bronze Star with combat "V," he received decorations and awards from a number of foreign countries. In 1998, Zumwalt was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his service to the United States in war and peace.  

Zumwalt authored two books about his life in the Navy. On Watch (1976) recounts his Navy career and warns Americans about the Soviet naval threat. My Father, My Son (1986), co-authored with his late son, Elmo III, is an account of their Vietnam experiences and his son's tragic illness.

A model of the DD 21 "Zumwalt" was unveiled for the first time in public aboard the Kennedy after the President's address. The window and other family members of the late Admiral Zumwalt were present for the announcement.