United States Atlantic Command (acronym from 1947-1993 USLANTCOM, after 1993 USACOM) was a Unified Combatant Command

Unified Combatant Command

A Unified Combatant Command is a United States Department of Defense command that is composed of forces from at least two Military Departments and has a broad and continuing mission. These commands are established to provide effective command and control of U.S. military forces, regardless of...

 of the United States Department of Defense

United States Department of Defense

The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...

. In 1999, U.S. Atlantic Command was renamed and given a new mission as United States Joint Forces Command

United States Joint Forces Command

United States Joint Forces Command was a former Unified Combatant Command of the United States Armed Forces. USJFCOM was a functional command that provided specific services to the military. The last commander was Army Gen. Raymond T. Odierno...

.

History

USLANTCOM was active from the 1947 to 1993 as a primarily U.S. Navy command, focused upon the wartime defense of the Atlantic sea lanes against Soviet attack, with the U.S. Atlantic Fleet

U.S. Atlantic Fleet

The United States Fleet Forces Command is an Atlantic Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources that are under the operational control of the United States Northern Command...

 and other subunified commands such as the Iceland Defense Force

Iceland Defense Force

The Iceland Defense Force was a military command of the United States armed forces from 1951 to 2006. The IDF, created at the request of NATO, came into existence when the United States signed an agreement to provide for the defense of Iceland, which does not, and did not, have its own unified...

 under its authority. The Navy's leading place within the command had been marked by having Commander-in-Chief U.S. Atlantic Fleet, CINCLANTFLT acting also as the Commander-in-Chief United States Atlantic Command between 1947 and 1985. CINCLANTFLT, in addition to the LANTCOM post, also held the position of NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic

Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic

The Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic was one of two supreme commanders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation , the other being the Supreme Allied Commander Europe . The SACLANT led Allied Command Atlantic, based at Norfolk, Virginia...

 (SACLANT). There were also Army and Air Force components, CINCARLANT and CINCAFLANT.

After the end of the Cold War, a 1993 reorganization gave the Command a new acronym, USACOM, and brought United States Army Forces Command

United States Army Forces Command

United States Army Forces Command is the largest Army Command and the preeminent provider of expeditionary, campaign-capable land forces to Combatant Commanders. Headquartered at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, FORSCOM consists of more than 750,000 Active Army, U.S. Army Reserve, and Army National...

 and Air Combat Command

Air Combat Command

Air Combat Command is a major command of the United States Air Force. ACC is one of ten major commands , reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force ....

 under its authority. In 1999, USACOM was renamed and given a new mission as United States Joint Forces Command

United States Joint Forces Command

United States Joint Forces Command was a former Unified Combatant Command of the United States Armed Forces. USJFCOM was a functional command that provided specific services to the military. The last commander was Army Gen. Raymond T. Odierno...

 (USJFCOM).

List of Combatant Commanders

No.	Image	Name	Start of Term	End of Term	Notes
1.		Adm. William H. P. Blandy William H. P. Blandy William Henry Purnell Blandy , known to friends as "Spike", was an admiral in the United States Navy during World War II.-Biography:... , USN	February 3, 1947	February 1, 1950
2.		Adm. William M. Fechteler William Fechteler William Morrow Fechteler was an admiral in the United States Navy who served as Chief of Naval Operations during the Eisenhower administration. He was the son of Rear Admiral Augustus F. Fechteler.-Biography:... , USN	February 1, 1950	August 15, 1951
3.		Adm. Lynde D. McCormick Lynde D. McCormick Admiral Lynde Dupuy McCormick was a four-star admiral in the United States Navy who served as vice chief of naval operations from 1950 to 1951 and as commander in chief of the United States Atlantic Fleet from 1951 to 1954, and was the first supreme allied commander of all NATO forces in the... , USN	August 15, 1951	April 12, 1954
4.		Adm. Jerauld Wright Jerauld Wright Admiral Jerauld Wright, USN, served as the Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Atlantic Command and the Commander-in-Chief of the U.S... , USN	April 12, 1954	February 28, 1960
5.		Adm. Robert L. Dennison, USN	February 28, 1960	April 30, 1963
6.		Adm. Harold P. Smith, USN	April 30, 1963	April 30, 1965
7.		Adm. Thomas H. Moorer, USN	April 30, 1965	June 17, 1967
8.		Adm. Ephraim P. Holmes Ephraim P. Holmes Ephraim Paul Holmes was a four-star admiral in the United States Navy who served as commander in chief of the U.S... , USN	June 17, 1967	September 30, 1970
9.		Adm. Charles K. Duncan Charles K. Duncan Charles Kenney Duncan was a United States Navy four star admiral who served as Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic/Commander in Chief, United States Atlantic Command/Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet from 1970 to 1972.-Military career:Duncan was born on December 7, 1911 in Nicholasville,... , USN	September 30, 1970	October 31, 1972
10.		Adm. Ralph W. Cousins Ralph W. Cousins Ralph W. Cousins was a United States Navy four star admiral and aviator. As an aircraft carrier pilot, Cousins led dive-bomber attacks against the Imperial Japanese Navy at the Battle of the Coral Sea in May 1942 for which he was awarded the Navy Cross... , USN	October 31, 1972	May 30, 1975
11.		Adm. Isaac C. Kidd Jr., USN	May 30, 1975	September 30, 1978
12.		Adm. Harry D. Train II Harry D. Train II Harry Depue Train II is a retired Admiral in the United States Navy and a Senior Fellow at the Joint Advanced Warfighting School at the Joint Forces Staff College in Norfolk, Virginia.-Naval career:... , USN	September 30, 1978	September 30, 1982
13.		Adm. Wesley L. McDonald Wesley L. McDonald Wesley L. McDonald was a United States Navy four-star admiral and naval aviator. He led the first air strike against North Vietnam after the Gulf of Tonkin incident and was the commander in charge of Operation Urgent Fury, the invasion of Grenada to rescue U.S. citizens... , USN	September 30, 1982	November 27, 1985
14.		Adm. Lee Baggett Jr., USN	November 27, 1985	November 22, 1988
15.		Adm. Frank B. Kelso II Frank B. Kelso II Frank Benton Kelso II is a retired admiral of the United States Navy, who served as Chief of Naval Operations in the early 1990s.-Early life:... , USN	November 22, 1988	May 18, 1990
16.		Adm. Leon A. Edney Leon A. Edney Leon Albert "Bud" Edney is a retired United States Navy officer. A native of Dedham, Massachusetts, he retired from the Navy as an admiral and served as Vice Chief of Naval Operations for the United States Navy.-Naval career:... , USN	May 18, 1990	July 13, 1992
17.		Adm. Paul D. Miller Paul David Miller Paul David Miller is a retired Admiral in the United States Navy. His last duty in the Navy was to serve as Commander-in-Chief, of the U.S. Atlantic Command.... , USN	July 13, 1992	October 31, 1994
18.		Gen. John J. Sheehan John J. Sheehan General John J. "Jack" Sheehan is a retired United States Marine Corps general. His final active duty commands, culminating 35 years of service in the Marine Corps, were as the Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic for NATO and as Commander-in-Chief for the U.S... , USMC	October 31, 1994	September 24, 1997
19.		Adm. Harold W. Gehman Jr., USN	September 24, 1997	October 7, 1999	continued to serve as Commander of U.S. Joint Forces Command until September 5, 2000