William J. Fallon

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William J. Fallon
Born December 30, 1944 (1944-12-30) (age 63)

Admiral William Fallon
Nickname Fox[1]
Allegiance Flag of the United States United States of America
Service/branch United States Navy
Years of service 1967 - 2008
Rank Admiral
Commands held U.S. Central Command
U.S. Pacific Command
U.S. Fleet Forces Command
Vice Chief of Naval Operations
Theodore Roosevelt Battle Group
Attack Squadron Sixty Five
Battles/wars Operation Iraqi Freedom
Operation Deliberate Force (Bosnia)
Vietnam War
Awards Defense Distinguished Service Medal (2)
Navy Distinguished Service Medal
Defense Superior Service Medal
Legion of Merit (4)
Bronze Star
Meritorious Service Medal (3)

Admiral William Joseph Fallon, USN (born December 30, 1944), served as Commander of the U.S. Central Command from March 2007[1] to March 2008. ADM Fallon was the first naval flight officer to hold that position. His other four-star assignments include Commander, U.S. Pacific Command from February 2005 to March 2007, Commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command from October 2003 to February 2005, and 31st Vice Chief of Naval Operations from October 2000 to August 2003. On March 11, 2008, he announced his resignation from CENTCOM and retirement from active duty, citing administrative complications caused in part by an article in Esquire Magazine, which described him as the only thing standing between the Bush Administration and war with Iran. On March 28th, Fallon's Deputy, U.S. Army Lieutenant General Martin E. Dempsey, took over as the acting commander. Army General David Petraeus was nominated to assume command on 23 April 2008 [2].

Contents

[edit] Early life

Fallon was born in East Orange, New Jersey and raised in Merchantville, New Jersey.[3] He earned a diploma from Camden Catholic High School in Cherry Hill, New Jersey.[4] A 1967 graduate of Villanova University, he received his commission through the Navy ROTC Program and was designated a Naval Flight Officer upon completion of flight training in December 1967.

Fallon is a graduate of the Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island, and the National War College in Washington, D.C. He holds a Master of Arts Degree in International Studies from Old Dominion University.

[edit] Military service

Fallon began his Naval Aviation career flying in the RA-5C Vigilante with a combat deployment to Vietnam, transitioning to the A-6 Intruder in 1974. He served in flying assignments with Attack Squadrons and Carrier air wings for twenty-four years, deploying to the Mediterranean Sea, Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans embarked in USS Saratoga (CV-60), USS Ranger (CV-61), USS Nimitz (CVN-68), USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) and USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71). He has logged more than 1,300 carrier arrested landings and 4,800 flight hours in tactical jet aircraft.

Fallon commanded Attack Squadron 65 (The World Famous Fighting Tigers), embarked in Dwight D. Eisenhower, Medium Attack Wing One at NAS Oceana, Va., and Carrier Air Wing Eight in Theodore Roosevelt during a combat deployment to the Persian Gulf for Operation Desert Storm in 1991. Assigned as Commander, Carrier Group Eight in 1995, he deployed to the Mediterranean as Commander, Theodore Roosevelt Battle Group and commanded Battle Force Sixth Fleet (CTF 60) during NATO’s combat Operation Deliberate Force in Bosnia. Adm. Fallon served as Commander, Second Fleet and Commander, Striking Fleet Atlantic from November 1997 to September 2000.

Shore duties included assignment as Aide and Flag Lieutenant to the Commander, Fleet Air Jacksonville, and to the staffs of Commander, Reconnaissance Attack Wing One; Commander, Operational Test Force, and Commander, Naval Air Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet. He has served as Deputy Director for Operations, Joint Task Force, Southwest Asia in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and as Deputy Director, Aviation Plans and Requirements on the Staff of the Chief of Naval Operations in Washington, D.C. His first flag officer assignment was with NATO as Assistant Chief of Staff, Plans and Policy for Supreme Allied Commander, Atlantic. He was then assigned as Deputy and Chief of Staff, U.S. Atlantic Fleet followed by assignment as Deputy Commander in Chief and Chief of Staff, U.S. Atlantic Command. Nominated for his fourth star, he became the 31st Vice Chief of Naval Operations in October 2000.

In February 2001, while serving as Vice Chief of Naval Operations, Fallon was sent to Japan as a Presidential Special Envoy to apologize for the submarine USS Greeneville (SSN-772)'s collision with the Ehime Maru.

In 2002 he testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works Committee that the military should be exempted from certain environmental laws because the laws impacted the military's ability to conduct operations at its bases.

He was then nominated and confirmed for assignment as the Commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command and U.S. Atlantic Fleet from October 2003 to February 2005. Following that, he was Commander, Pacific Command from February 2005 until March 2007; his assignment was his third four star assignment -- a rarity for military officers.

During his tenure as head of the U.S. Pacific Command, Fallon took a conciliatory approach towards China, a position that drew the ire of hardliners including Washington Times reporter Bill Gertz.

[edit] United States Central Command

Robert Gates with Fallon and John Abizaid at the CENTCOM Change of Command ceremony, 2007.
Robert Gates with Fallon and John Abizaid at the CENTCOM Change of Command ceremony, 2007.

On January 4, 2007, President Bush nominated Fallon for his fourth four-star command to replace John Abizaid, who was retiring from the US Army, as Commander of the United States Central Command, (CENTCOM).[5]

The United States Senate confirmed Admiral Fallon as the first Navy admiral to command CENTCOM on February 7.[6][7] He relieved General Abizaid on 16 March 2007.

As combatant commander of Central Command, Fallon was David Petraeus's superior officer. Petraeus is the commander of the current Iraq force, Multinational Force Iraq.

As CENTCOM commander, Fallon has often criticized Iran, while also encouraging negotiations. On May 28, 2007, he noted that the United States would continue to have a military presence in the Middle East, despite Iran wishing otherwise. However, he also said, "We have to figure out a way to come to an arrangement with them [Iran]".[8] In an Al-Jazeera broadcast on September 30, 2007, he criticized those publicly urging war, stating "This constant drum beat of conflict is what strikes me which is not helpful and not useful. [...] I expect that there will be no war and that is what we ought to be working for." He also stated that Iran was not as strong as it claimed, "Not militarily, economically or politically."[9]

On March 11, 2008 Secretary of Defense Robert Gates announced the resignation of Fallon as CentCom Commander. He stated that Fallon's reason for resigning centered on the controversy regarding a recent article in Esquire magazine[10] which depicted him as openly criticizing the current Bush administration[11] with specific regard to American policy towards Iran.[12][13]

After his widely publicized resignation, interpreted as opposition to military action against Iran, the conservative The Washington Times countered with a report that Fallon's active and retired military critics believed that he was "pushed to resign" by higher officials because "he failed to prevent foreign fighters and munitions from entering Iraq".[14]

[edit] Awards and decorations

His awards include:

Bronze oak leaf cluster
 Defense Distinguished Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
Distinguished Service Medal
Defense Superior Service Medal
Gold award star
Gold award star
Gold award star
 Legion of Merit with three award stars
Bronze Star
Gold award star
Gold award star
 Meritorious Service Medal with two award stars
Air Medal with Valor V and bronze strike/flight award and one gold award star
Navy Commendation Medal
  • Various unit and campaign decorations

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b Levesque, William R.. "With passing of flag, CentCom gets new leader", St. Petersburg Times, 2007-03-17, p. 11A. Retrieved on 2008-03-12. 
  2. ^ http://edition.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/04/23/petraeus/index.html
  3. ^ Shanker, Thom. "Adm. William J. Fallon: An Experienced Naval Officer, and a Diplomat", The New York Times, 2007-01-08. Retrieved on 2008-03-12. 
  4. ^ Martin, Susan Taylor. "From facilitator to warrior", St. Petersburg Times, 2007-01-14. Retrieved on 2008-03-12. "Tall and lean, Fallon ran on the track team at Camden Catholic High." 
  5. ^ Raddatz, Martha. "Replacements for Generals Abizaid and Casey", Blogs: Political Radar, ABC News, 2007-01-04. Retrieved on 2008-03-12. 
  6. ^ Flaherty, Anne. "Senate confirms Fallon for CentCom chief", Army Times, Associated Press, 2007-02-08. Retrieved on 2008-03-12. 
  7. ^ Phillips, Kyra. "U.S. Commander: No civil war in Iraq", Iraq: Transition of Power, CNN, 2007-03-27. Retrieved on 2008-03-12. 
  8. ^ "Adm. Fallon: Iran can't be ignored", USA Today, 2007-05-28. Retrieved on 2008-03-12. 
  9. ^ Murphy, Brian. "Nervous Gulf Hears Calmer Tones on Iran", USA Today, Associated Press, 2007-09-29. Retrieved on 2008-03-12. 
  10. ^ Barnett, Thomas P.M.. "The Man Between War and Peace", Esquire, 2008-03-11. Retrieved on 2008-03-12. 
  11. ^ "Fallon Resigns As Mideast Military Chief", Associated Press, 2008-03-11. Retrieved on 2008-03-12. 
  12. ^ "US Mid-East commander steps down", BBC News, 2008-03-12. Retrieved on 2008-03-12. 
  13. ^ Hansen, Louis. "Interview: How Fallon's storied Navy career was curtailed", The Virginian-Pilot, 2008-04-18. Retrieved on 2008-04-20. 
  14. ^ Carter, Sara. "Warriors welcome Fallon's resignation", The Washington Times, 2008-03-13. Retrieved on 2008-03-13. 

[edit] External links


Preceded by
Thomas B. Fargo		 Commander of United States Pacific Command
2005 - 2007		 Succeeded by
Timothy J. Keating
Preceded by
John Abizaid		 Commander of United States Central Command
2007 - 2008		 Succeeded by
Martin Dempsey(acting)