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 regarded as a two-star rank with a NATO code of OF-7.
The Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a public graduate school operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California.
Hispanic and Latino Admirals in the United States Navy can trace their tradition of naval military service to the Latino sailors, who have served in the Navy in every war and conflict since the American Revolution. Prior to the Civil War, the highest rank reached by a Latino-American in the Navy was commodore. Such was the case of Commodore Uriah Phillips Levy (1792–1862), a Sephardic Jew of Latin American descent and great grandson of Dr. Samuel Nunez, who served in the War of 1812. During the American Civil War, the government of the United States recognized that the rapid expanding Navy was in need of admirals therefore, Congress proceeded to authorize the appointment of nine officers the rank of rear admiral. On July 16, 1862, Flag Officer David Glasgow Farragut became the first Hispanic-American to be appointed to the rank of rear admiral. Two years later (1864), Farragut became a vice admiral, and in 1866 the Navy's first full admiral. During World War I, Robert Lopez, the first Hispanic graduate of the United States Naval Academy, served with the rank of commodore in command of the Mare Island Naval Shipyard, and during World War II five Hispanics served with the ranks of rear admiral or above in either the European or Pacific Theater's of the war. As of April 2007, twenty-two Hispanic-Americans have reached the rank of admiral, and of this number thirteen were graduates of the USNA.
Michelle Janine Howard is a retired United States Navy four-star admiral who last served as the commander of United States Naval Forces Europe while she concurrently was the commander of United States Naval Forces Africa and commander of Allied Joint Force Command Naples. She previously was the 38th Vice Chief of Naval Operations. She assumed her last assignment on June 7, 2016.
James Edwin McPherson is an American government official and retired United States Navy rear admiral. He served as the General Counsel of the Army from January 2, 2018 to March 24, 2020. He served as the United States Under Secretary of the Army from March 25, 2020, to January 20, 2021, and in acting capacity from July 23, 2019, to March 24, 2020. He served as Acting United States Secretary of the Navy from April 7, 2020, to May 29, 2020, following the resignation of Thomas Modly.
Ann Elisabeth Rondeau is a retired United States Navy vice admiral. During her tenure in the navy, she received two Defense Distinguished Service Medals, the Navy Distinguished Service Medal, and four Legion of Merit awards. Rondeau was the president of National Defense University and, after serving as the president of the College of DuPage, was chosen by United States Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer to be president of the Naval Postgraduate School in 2019.
Rear Admiral Roberta L. Hazard was the third female line officer to be promoted to the rank of rear admiral in the United States Navy, and at the time, the highest-ranking woman in the U.S. military. She was the first woman to command a United States Naval Training Command.
John Francis Kirby is a retired rear admiral in the United States Navy serving as Coordinator for Strategic Communications at the National Security Council in the White House since late May 2022. He previously served as Pentagon Press Secretary for the first year and a half of the Biden Administration, and worked as a military and diplomatic analyst for CNN from 2017 to 2021. Prior to that, he served in the Obama administration as the spokesperson for the United States Department of State from 2015 to 2017.
Sara Annette Joyner is a United States Navy officer. She is the first female strike fighter pilot to command a United States Navy fighter squadron and a carrier air wing. Her promotion to rear admiral was authorized by the United States Senate on 25 May 2017. On 24 February, the Secretary of Defence announced that Joyner would be promoted to the rank of rear admiral ; she was pinned on 1 April 2021. She was promoted to vice admiral on 3 June 2022.
Paul J. Schlise is a rear admiral in the United States Navy.
Marcus Aurelius Hitchcock is a retired United States Navy rear admiral who last served as the director for strategy, plans, and policy of the United States Space Command. A naval aviator, he has commanded the Navy Warfare Development Command and Carrier Strike Group 3.
Carl Andrew Lahti is a United States Navy rear admiral and submarine warfare officer who is dual-hatted as the 36th commander of the United States Naval Forces Japan and commander of Navy Region Japan since July 14, 2021. As CNFJ/CNRJ, Lahti is responsible for providing shore readiness to U.S. naval forces in Japan and maritime support to the American forward presence in Japan as well as cooperation with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force to promote regional stability and deter aggression. He most recently served as the 91st Commandant of Naval District Washington and deputy commander of the Joint Force Headquarters National Capital Region from June 2018 to June 2021.
Kathleen Marie Creighton is a United States Navy rear admiral who most recently served as the Director of Warfare Integration of the United States Navy from September 18, 2020 to August 21, 2021. Previously, she served as the Deputy Commander of the Joint Force Headquarters–Department of Defense Information Networks from August 2017 to August 2019.
Peter Gerard Vasely is a United States Navy rear admiral who serves as deputy director for future joint force development of the Joint Staff since June 3, 2022. He served as a special assistant to the Director of the Navy Staff from November 4, 2021 to June 3, 2022. Before that, he served as the Commander of Special Operations Joint Task Force–Afghanistan and NATO Special Operations Component Command–Afghanistan from May 17, 2021 to August 31, 2021. Vasely is a Navy SEAL officer and former member of SEAL Team ONE and Development Group. Previously, he served as the Director of Operations of the Defense Intelligence Agency from November 2019 to 2021.
Frederick William Kacher is a United States Navy rear admiral who serves as the vice director for operations of the Joint Staff. He most previously served as the assistant deputy chief of naval operations for operations, plans, and strategy of the United States Navy from May 25, 2021, to June 2022. Prior to that, he served as the Commander of Expeditionary Strike Group 7.
Leonard Cy Dollaga is a United States Navy rear admiral who has served as the Chief of Legislative Affairs since May 13, 2022. He most recently served as the Commander of Submarine Group 7, Task Force 74, and Task Force 54 from August 28, 2020 to April 13, 2022. He was previously the commander of the Undersea Warfighting Development Center from May 24, 2018, to June 18, 2020.
