Moorer Thomas H., Adm., USN (Ret.)
(1912–2004)
Designated a naval aviator in 1936, the admiral served in the USS Langley (CV-1), USS Lexington (CV-2) and USS Enterprise (CV-6). During World War II he was with Fleet Air Wing Ten in the southwest Pacific and was shot down in a PBY in 1942, receiving the Purple Heart. In 1944 he commanded Bombing Squadron 132 operating in Cuba and Africa, then gunnery and tactical officer on the staff of Commander Air Force Atlantic. Subsequent duty included: XO Naval Aviation Ordnance Test Station; Ops officer of the Midway; Staff of Commander Air Force Atlantic; Aide to Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Air); CO of the Salisbury Sound; Assistant CNO (War Gaming Matters) in 1958; Commander Carrier Division Six; and CinC Pacific Fleet.
In Volume II the admiral continues discussion of his career and world events beginning in 1965 and including: Dominican Republic Crisis; tours as CinCLant and SACLant; NATO conferences. Became CNO in 1967--covers: selection board; personnel policies; Pueblo incident; Tonkin Gulf; missile types; Vietnam War; POWs; drug problems; Cambodia cross-border operations; Operation Deep Freeze; women in the Navy; and threat of submarine base in Cuba. Became chairman of the JCS in 1970--discusses characteristics of a chairman; decisions made; increased unity of JCS during Vietnam War.
This third and concluding volume of Admiral Moorer's oral history covers his years as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (1970-1974) and his post- retirement activities. The Vietnam War figures prominently, and several large-scale military operations are covered in detail, as well as discussion of joint service relationships during the war, North Vietnamese treachery, Vietnamization, and the My Lai incident. Moorer discusses at length how the military was hampered by anti-war sentiment from the news media and Congress. Other issues covered in this volume are overseas base denial, the concept of a naval-free Indian Ocean, the Panama Canal Treaty, and Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) under Presidents Johnson, Nixon, Ford, and Carter. Several of the interviews are devoted to Moorer's assessments of key political and military figures--McNamara, Kissinger, Laird, Nitze, Vinson, Rickover, Zumwalt, and Westmoreland, among others. He discusses "ethnicity", the tendency of some Congressmen to show favoritism to the countries of their origins and not take into account what is best for the United States, especially in regard to India, Israel, and Greece. Because this series of interviews was spread out over four years, current world events caused some attitudes to change: in the first interview in 1977 Moorer saw Iran under the Shah as one of the most stable and friendly of the Middle East countries; by 1981 when the volume concludes, that country was one of our most distrusted and hated enemies.
About Volume I
Based on 11 interviews conducted by John T. Mason, Jr., from February 1975 through September 1975. The volume contains 568 pages of interview transcript plus an index. The transcript is copyright 1981 by the U.S. Naval Institute; the restrictions originally placed on the transcript by the interviewee have since been removed.
About Volume II
Based on eight interviews conducted by John T. Mason, Jr., from October 1975 through November 1976. The volume contains 359 pages of interview transcript plus an index. The transcript is copyright 1982 by the U.S. Naval Institute; the restrictions originally placed on the transcript by the interviewee have since been removed.
About Volume III
Based on 11 interviews conducted by John T. Mason, Jr., from February 1977 through June 1981. The volume contains 551 pages of interview transcript plus an index. The transcript is copyright 1984 by the U.S. Naval Institute; the restrictions originally placed on the transcript by the interviewee have since been removed.