Robert L.J. Long
Encyclopedia
Robert Lyman John Long was a four star admiral in the United States Navy
who served as Vice Chief of Naval Operations
from 1977–1979 and Commander in Chief Pacific
from 1979 to 1983.
, and grew up there. He was the son of Trigg Allen and Margaret (Franklin) Long. He attended Paseo High School
, Kansas City Junior College, and Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri
, before enrolling at the United States Naval Academy
.
and commanded the , a diesel-powered submarine, the and the , nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine
s.
He also commanded the Submarine Force, United States Atlantic fleet; Submarines, Allied Command; and Submarine Force, Western Atlantic area. He was executive assistant and naval aide to the under secretary of the Navy; deputy chief of naval operations and vice chief of naval operations
.
Long's final Navy posting was as Pacific Commander in Chief
.
's fact-finding committee, the Long Commission, that investigated the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing
attack that killed 241 U.S. Marines
. The Commission's report was widely praised for being tough and direct. The report found senior military officials responsible for security lapses and blamed the military chain of command for the disaster.
Long participated in the Security Review Commission led by General Richard Stilwell
that grew out of the Walker
spy case and which was tasked with review of security procedures conducted for security clearances. He was a member of an American election observer team sent to the Philippines
in 1986 and headed by Senator Richard Lugar to observe the Presidential election contest involving Ferdinand Marcos
and Corazon Aquino
. Long was teamed with the then first-term senator from Massachusetts John Kerry
. He joined the Defense Policy Board
in 1984, and was a part of the Advisory Committee on Command and Control of Nuclear Weapons, chaired by Jeane Kirkpatrick
.
Long served as President of the Naval Academy Alumni Association from 1991 to 1994. He also served on several corporate boards, including Northrop
, ConTel and GTE
.
. He died in National Naval Medical Center
in Bethesda, Maryland
, on June 27, 2002. His wife died May 14, 2004, in Annapolis, Maryland
. They had three children and five grandchildren.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
who served as Vice Chief of Naval Operations
Vice Chief of Naval Operations
The Vice Chief of Naval Operations is the second highest ranking officer in the United States Navy. In the event that the Chief of Naval Operations is absent or is unable to perform his duties, the VCNO assumes the duties and responsibilities of the CNO. The VCNO may also perform other duties...
from 1977–1979 and Commander in Chief Pacific
United States Pacific Command
The United States Pacific Command is a Unified Combatant Command of the United States armed forces responsible for the Pacific Ocean area. It is led by the Commander, Pacific Command , who is the supreme military authority for the various branches of the Armed Forces of the United States serving...
from 1979 to 1983.
Early years and education
Long was born in Kansas City, MissouriKansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
, and grew up there. He was the son of Trigg Allen and Margaret (Franklin) Long. He attended Paseo High School
Paseo Academy
Paseo Academy, also referred to as Paseo Academy of Fine and Performing Arts, and sometimes as Paseo High School is a magnet performing arts high school located at 4747 Flora in Kansas City, Missouri...
, Kansas City Junior College, and Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, before enrolling at the United States Naval Academy
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
.
Naval career
Long graduated from the Naval Academy in 1943, served on the battleship in the Pacific and entered the submarine service after World War II. He saw combat in the Vietnam WarVietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
and commanded the , a diesel-powered submarine, the and the , nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine
Ballistic missile submarine
A ballistic missile submarine is a submarine equipped to launch ballistic missiles .-Description:Ballistic missile submarines are larger than any other type of submarine, in order to accommodate SLBMs such as the Russian R-29 or the American Trident...
s.
He also commanded the Submarine Force, United States Atlantic fleet; Submarines, Allied Command; and Submarine Force, Western Atlantic area. He was executive assistant and naval aide to the under secretary of the Navy; deputy chief of naval operations and vice chief of naval operations
Vice Chief of Naval Operations
The Vice Chief of Naval Operations is the second highest ranking officer in the United States Navy. In the event that the Chief of Naval Operations is absent or is unable to perform his duties, the VCNO assumes the duties and responsibilities of the CNO. The VCNO may also perform other duties...
.
Long's final Navy posting was as Pacific Commander in Chief
United States Pacific Command
The United States Pacific Command is a Unified Combatant Command of the United States armed forces responsible for the Pacific Ocean area. It is led by the Commander, Pacific Command , who is the supreme military authority for the various branches of the Armed Forces of the United States serving...
.
After the Navy
Following his retirement from the Navy in 1983, Long was active in a variety of governmental and the military affairs. He served as the principal executive of President Ronald ReaganRonald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
's fact-finding committee, the Long Commission, that investigated the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing
1983 Beirut barracks bombing
The Beirut Barracks Bombing occurred during the Lebanese Civil War, when two truck bombs struck separate buildings housing United States and French military forces—members of the Multinational Force in Lebanon—killing 299 American and French servicemen...
attack that killed 241 U.S. Marines
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
. The Commission's report was widely praised for being tough and direct. The report found senior military officials responsible for security lapses and blamed the military chain of command for the disaster.
Long participated in the Security Review Commission led by General Richard Stilwell
Richard G. Stilwell
General Richard Giles Stilwell served as Commander, United States Forces Korea from 1973 to 1976, and Acting Commander of the U.S. Army, Pacific from September to December 1974...
that grew out of the Walker
John Anthony Walker
John Anthony Walker, Jr. is a former United States Navy Chief Warrant Officer and communications specialist convicted of spying for the Soviet Union from 1968 to 1985, at the height of the Cold War...
spy case and which was tasked with review of security procedures conducted for security clearances. He was a member of an American election observer team sent to the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
in 1986 and headed by Senator Richard Lugar to observe the Presidential election contest involving Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was a Filipino leader and an authoritarian President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He was a lawyer, member of the Philippine House of Representatives and a member of the Philippine Senate...
and Corazon Aquino
Corazon Aquino
Maria Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino was the 11th President of the Philippines and the first woman to hold that office in Philippine history. She is best remembered for leading the 1986 People Power Revolution, which toppled Ferdinand Marcos and restored democracy in the Philippines...
. Long was teamed with the then first-term senator from Massachusetts John Kerry
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...
. He joined the Defense Policy Board
Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee
The Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee, also referred to as the Defense Policy Board is a federal advisory committee to the United States Department of Defense. Their charter is available online through the office of the Director of Administration and Management of the Department of Defense...
in 1984, and was a part of the Advisory Committee on Command and Control of Nuclear Weapons, chaired by Jeane Kirkpatrick
Jeane Kirkpatrick
Jeane Jordan Kirkpatrick was an American ambassador and an ardent anticommunist. After serving as Ronald Reagan's foreign policy adviser in his 1980 campaign and later in his Cabinet, the longtime Democrat-turned-Republican was nominated as the U.S...
.
Long served as President of the Naval Academy Alumni Association from 1991 to 1994. He also served on several corporate boards, including Northrop
Northrop Corporation
Northrop Corporation was a leading United States aircraft manufacturer from its formation in 1939 until its merger with Grumman to form Northrop Grumman in 1994. The company is known for its development of the flying wing design, although only a few of these have entered service.-History:Jack...
, ConTel and GTE
GTE
GTE Corporation, formerly General Telephone & Electronics Corporation was the largest independent telephone company in the United States during the days of the Bell System....
.
Personal life
Long married Sara Katherine Helms on August 28, 1944, in Jacksonville, FloridaJacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
. He died in National Naval Medical Center
National Naval Medical Center
The National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, USA — commonly known as the Bethesda Naval Hospital — was for decades the flagship of the United States Navy's system of medical centers. A federal institution, it conducted medical and dental research as well as providing health care for...
in Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda is a census designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House , which in turn took its name from Jerusalem's Pool of Bethesda...
, on June 27, 2002. His wife died May 14, 2004, in Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland, as well as the county seat of Anne Arundel County. It had a population of 38,394 at the 2010 census and is situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east of Washington, D.C. Annapolis is...
. They had three children and five grandchildren.
Further reading
- Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage, Sherry Sontag, Christopher Drew, Annette Lawrence Drew, Public Affairs, New York, 1998.