Five-star Admiral William Halsey of the United States Navy

Five-star Admiral William Frederick Halsey of the United States Navy (1882.10.30~~1959.8.16), He was a famous naval admiral in World War II. During World War II, he served as commander of the U.S. aircraft carrier task force, supreme commander of the South Pacific Theater and commander of the Third Fleet. He was brave and good at fighting, defeated the Japanese navy many times, and made many military exploits in the Pacific War. He was nicknamed "The Bull" because of his bravery, and he was also called the "Sailor's Admiral" because of his easy-going attitude. Someone once compared Halsey with Patton. It is true that they are both fighters, but their personalities are different. Patton is fake bold and really cautious, while Halsey is really bold and fake cautious! But even if Halsey becomes an army general, he will undoubtedly be a tank general! His father was an 1873 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. He served in the Navy for many years and was awarded the rank of Navy Captain. Many of Halsey's ancestors were related to the Navy, which had an influence on his choice of a naval career. In 1900, he was admitted to the Naval Academy. In 1904, due to President Roosevelt's expansion of the Navy and the need for a large number of new officers, Halsey graduated early and served on the USS Missouri, a coal-burning battleship. Although he is only a low-level officer, he is eager to show his talents in the war.

Before World War I, Halsey was assigned to command the destroyer USS Kansas. It happened that the future President of the United States, Franklin Roosevelt, was also engaged in maritime survey work on this warship, and the two formed an unusual friendship. When World War I broke out, Halsey finally got his wish and became the commander of a destroyer fleet. During the battle, he showed outstanding military talents and was appreciated by his superiors. After World War I, Halsey went to the U.S. Naval Academy to serve as the captain of a training ship, and the school's first pilot group happened to be based on the ship as a training base. This made Halsey An unexpected opportunity to learn about aviation. He was fascinated by flying. Although he was not allowed to participate in the flight due to poor eyesight, he was convinced that aircraft had become an important part of the maritime combat fleet and began to delve into the problem of how aviation forces contracted with surface ships.

In 1938, Halsey served as captain of the USS Saratoga, becoming one of the earliest aircraft carrier commanders in the United States. Two years later, he was promoted to major general. Although he has entered the ranks of senior commanders, he is still deeply interested in various new technologies and has become an active advocate of certain new technologies and new equipment. Halsey once said after the war: "If I were to list the tools that helped us win the Pacific War, I would put them in the following order: 1. Submarines, 2. Radar, 3. Aircraft, 4. Bulldozers "

On November 28, 1941, a few days before the Pearl Harbor incident, Halsey was ordered to lead a task force with the "Enterprise" aircraft carrier as the core to attack Wake Island. Transport long-range combat aircraft. By this time he had been promoted to lieutenant general and became the commander of the Eighth Pacific Fleet Task Force (aircraft carrier task force). Before leaving, he asked Pacific Fleet Commander Kimmel: "How far do you want me to go?" This means that if he encounters an enemy ship, there is the possibility of provoking a war. Kimmel responded: "Use your common sense!" Halsey argued that Kimmel had effectively given him carte blanche to act as the situation dictated. After setting off, Halsey issued the No. 1 battle order to all personnel: sink an enemy ship as soon as it encounters it. His chief of staff reminded him: "Is this war?" Halsey calmly replied: "I am responsible for everything. We shoot first and reason later." But fortunately, he did not encounter the Japanese ship. Three days after arriving at Wake Island, he received a historic telegram: "When our battle is over, Japanese will only be spoken in hell." Furious, he immediately led his troops in the direction of the enemy's retreat. Searching, intending to take revenge, they did not return to Pearl Harbor until the fuel was about to run out.

At this time, Pearl Harbor was full of tragic scenes, with ships capsized and morale low. Even many senior generals advocated passive avoidance. war. But Halsey firmly supported Nimitz's combat policy of active defense and proactive attack.

He personally led the only aircraft carrier mobile formation of the Pacific Fleet at the time to launch a surprise attack on the Marshall Islands and Gilbert Islands controlled by the Japanese army. The success boosted the morale of the US military and forced the Japanese military command to recall them from the front line. One-third of the combat ships were Japanese frontline forces that were weakened. For this, he received his first Distinguished Service Medal.

In April 1942, Halsey was promoted to commander of the aircraft carrier fleet of the U.S. Pacific Fleet and was ordered to command two aircraft carrier groups. Soon, he assisted Lieutenant Colonel Doolittle in leading the B-25 bomber to successfully bomb the Japanese capital Tokyo.