Admiral Arleigh A. Burke was born on October 19, 1901, in Boulder, Colorado. Burke grew up in Boulder in a fairly difficult environment – “He attended a one room elementary school through the eighth grade and then high school…”(“Admiral Arleigh A Burke”). Arleigh had other ideas for his future – “…farming fitted neither his talents nor desires, he sought and received a congressional appointment to the US Naval Academy.” (“Admiral Arleigh A Burke, USN”). Upon his high school graduation, he attended the Naval Academy in June 1919, and then graduated 71st out of 413 in the class of 1923. He served five years on the USS Arizona (BB-39), USS Procyon (AG-11), USS Chester (CA-27), USS Antares and USS Argonne (AG’s), before he served on USS Craven
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Admiral Burke had a vision for the Navy, with consideration to the rising power through communism and materialization of nuclear weapons and power. He used rational persuasion tactics through written arguments to the government, so he may be provided with the necessary resources to improve the strength of the Navy. Due to growth in nuclear power, “He orchestrated the move to an all-nuclear powered submarine fleet and sought to transition surface combatant ship to nuclear propulsion as well, including aircraft carriers.” (Shaarda, “Admiral Arleigh Burke”). This transition allowed for the Navy to become stealthier when it came to submarine operations and gave them more power, thus making them more efficient and capable of outperforming the enemy. The Movement toward nuclear propulsion on surface combatant ships and aircraft carriers allowed for higher travel velocity and extended fuel life. Burke pushed to improve the weapon systems. “He directed the development…of new technology and weapons systems…a naval intermediate-range ballistic missile system eventually named Polaris.” (Shaarda, “Admiral Arleigh Burke”). With this weapon system, the U.S. Navy gained the capability to launch a missile guided by trajectory coordinates, carrying a nuclear warhead. This gave the U.S. far more advanced nuclear power than opposing countries, making the U.S. a supreme military power. However, military supremacy was not the only objective on Burke’s agenda. “He also continued to fight movements within the Department of Defense to centralize individual service operational authority under the Secretary of defense.” (Shaarda, “Admiral Arleigh Burke”). In order to accomplish this, he
Admiral Burke had a vision for the Navy, with consideration to the rising power through communism and materialization of nuclear weapons and power. He used rational persuasion tactics through written arguments to the government, so he may be provided with the necessary resources to improve the strength of the Navy. Due to growth in nuclear power, “He orchestrated the move to an all-nuclear powered submarine fleet and sought to transition surface combatant ship to nuclear propulsion as well, including aircraft carriers.” (Shaarda, “Admiral Arleigh Burke”). This transition allowed for the Navy to become stealthier when it came to submarine operations and gave them more power, thus making them more efficient and capable of outperforming the enemy. The Movement toward nuclear propulsion on surface combatant ships and aircraft carriers allowed for higher travel velocity and extended fuel life. Burke pushed to improve the weapon systems. “He directed the development…of new technology and weapons systems…a naval intermediate-range ballistic missile system eventually named Polaris.” (Shaarda, “Admiral Arleigh Burke”). With this weapon system, the U.S. Navy gained the capability to launch a missile guided by trajectory coordinates, carrying a nuclear warhead. This gave the U.S. far more advanced nuclear power than opposing countries, making the U.S. a supreme military power. However, military supremacy was not the only objective on Burke’s agenda. “He also continued to fight movements within the Department of Defense to centralize individual service operational authority under the Secretary of defense.” (Shaarda, “Admiral Arleigh Burke”). In order to accomplish this, he