Served with any of these? Just named USNA distinquished graduates. These are 3 of 5 awardees.
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Admiral Frank B. Kelso II ’56, USN (Ret.)
Frank Benton Kelso II hailed from Fayetteville, TN, before being shocked by the “system” at the Naval Academy, according to the 1956 Lucky Bag. He was also described as an avid golfer and “always industrious and jovial, he possessed the attributes of a good leader.”

Following graduation in 1956, he served on the cargo ship USS OGLETHORPE (AKA-100) before attending Submarine School in 1958. He was assigned to the submarine USS SABALO (SS-302) before returning to Submarine School for nuclear power training in January 1960. He then served on the USS POLLACK (SSN-603), USS DANIEL WEBSTER (SSBN-626) and USS SCULPIN (SSN-590), steadily rising up the ranks.

In subsequent tours, Admiral Kelso served as Commanding Officer Naval Nuclear Power School, USS FINBACK and USS BLUEFISH. He then served as Executive Assistant to the Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Command and U.S. Atlantic Fleet and Supreme Allied Commander, Atlantic. He was assigned to reestablish and to command of Submarine Squadron Seven in 1977. Selected as Rear Admiral in 1980, his Pentagon assignments included Director, Strategic Submarine Division, Office of the CNO, and Director, Office of Program Appraisal, Office of the Secretary of the Navy.

As Sixth Fleet Commander, Admiral Kelso led multiple successful actions against Libya in the 1980s. Sixth Fleet forces intercepted the plane carrying the terrorists who commandeered the ACHILLE LAURO, setting a precedent for our military actions against current terrorist threats. This earned him a place in history as one of the first successful leaders in the modern war on terrorism.

He was promoted to four stars and assumed command of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet in June 1986. Assignments to Commander U.S. Atlantic Command and NATO’s Supreme Allied Command Atlantic followed in 1988.

The Admiral’s career culminated in his appointment as the 24th Chief of Naval Operations, which he held from July 1990 to April 1994, facing the military challenges posed by Operation Desert Shield in 1990 and Operation Desert Storm the following year. He also took on the daunting task of directing a study on how to modernize and transition the Navy into the post-cold war 21st century. In 1993 he held the post of Acting Secretary of the Navy while also CNO, the first to ever hold both positions concurrently.

While planning for the future of the Navy, Admiral Kelso was jolted back to the present by the events of Tailhook in 1991. Many praised his subsequent revisions to officer and enlisted training to provide a continuum of education which would address the changing social issues of any era and hopefully provide better foresight than the Navy possessed in 1991. In the spring of 1992, he endorsed an ambitious plan to put women in combat jets and on combat ships. Admiral Kelso eliminated vestiges of an old and embedded culture to make way for a brighter future for all. Our core values of honor, commitment and courage were initiated on his watch.

Upon his retirement, Admiral Kelso remained very active with the Navy and the Naval Academy. He was a senior Fellow at the Armed Forces Staff College, offered many of his personal effects to the Lincoln County Museum in Tennessee for permanent display, was the Reaffirmation Day speaker for the Class of 2006, has been a tireless fundraiser for his class, enjoys presenting the Frank B. Kelso Class of 1956 award during Commissioning Week, delivered the first Forrestal lecture in Alumni Hall, and is a trustee emeritus of the Naval Academy Foundation Athletic and Scholarship Division. He also continues to consult with Congress and industry on defense matters.

Admiral Kelso has been described as “a 4.0 sailor” who “brought sponsorship of terrorism to a standstill.” “Today’s Navy is benefiting from his contributions and sense of direction that he sustained and passed on to those who followed,” which includes a son and son-in-law currently serving as squadron commanders. He and his wife Landess live in Fayetteville, TN.

Admiral Henry G. Chiles Jr. ’60, USN (Ret.)
Henry G. Chiles Jr. was born and raised up the road from the Academy in Baltimore and Linthicum, MD. As a first class midshipman, “Hank” was a Midshipman Company Commander and graduated with distinction. He was awarded the Thompson Trophy for promoting athletics, having helped propel Navy to the national lacrosse championship in 1960 as a third-string All-American. The Lucky Bag noted his “constant hustle and competitive spirit,” calling him “one of the most prominent men in his class.”

Following commissioning, Admiral Chiles served aboard USS BORIE (DD 704), followed by submarine training in 1961 and nuclear propulsion training to begin his long service in nuclear submarines.

Between 1963 and 1973 he served aboard multiple nuclear submarines, including the USS TRITON, USS TECUMSEH, Submarine Squadron 15 staff in Guam and USS DRUM, taking a break to receive a Masters of Arts from Oxford University as a CNO Scholar in politics, philosophy and economics.

Admiral Chiles returned to life underwater in 1976 aboard the USS GURNARD for an under-ice deployment in the Arctic, assuming command upon return. He was reassigned in 1980 to serve as Special Assistant to the Director of the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program. Other posts included Commander, Submarine Squadron Three; Commander, Naval Training Center, San Diego; Director, Strategic Submarine Division; Deputy Assistant Chief of Naval Operations (Undersea Warfare); Commander, Submarine Group Eight in Naples, Italy, and Commander, Submarine Force Atlantic where he significantly changed attack submarine force operations after the end of the Cold War.

Admiral Chiles was assigned as Deputy Commander, United States Strategic Command in 1993, and less than a year later, was appointed Commander in Chief, responsible for all U.S. Air Force and Navy strategic nuclear forces. He was the first Admiral to lead the U.S. Strategic Command.

During his 36-year career, he was awarded the DOD Distinguished Service Medal, Navy Distinguished Service Medal, five Legion of Merits, and other decorations.

Retiring in 1996, he returned to the Academy in 1999 for three years in the McMullen Distinguished Chair of Leadership. His teaching style and years of experience made Admiral Chiles an ideal and very popular teacher, adding much to the Academy’s curriculum. He has served on multiple councils, boards, and committees, including Sandia National Laboratories, The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, the National Defense University Capstone Program, Naval Submarine League, Naval Academy Foundation (Athletic and Scholarship Programs), McDonogh School as a trustee, National Military Family Association and Dolphin Scholarship Foundation. As the National Chairman of the Submarine Centennial Celebration in 2000, he successfully urged the U.S. Postal Service to issue stamps honoring the Submarine Service.

In 2006, Admiral Chiles addressed the incoming Class of 2010 at the Reaffirmation Ceremony, welcoming 2010 aboard, citing the many years of service of the Class of 1960 including the heroic, inspirational leadership of Lieutenant General Bill Keys, USMC, and other exemplary classmates, and urging their acceptance and practice of honor, courage and commitment.

His wife, Katy, was a Navy Relief volunteer, led the spouse portion of the Capstone Course for newly selected flag and general officers and was president of the Dolphin Scholarship Foundation.

Admiral Chiles’s peers describe him as a “superb naval officer and great gentleman and American,” “a truly outstanding role model for today’s Midshipmen,” “possessing great integrity” with a “record of achievement that very few Naval officers have attained.” His service to the Navy and Academy has been nothing less than outstanding.

Rear Admiral Benjamin F. Montoya ’58, CEC, USN (Ret.)