John G. Crommelin
| John Geraerdt Crommelin, Jr. | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Nickname(s) | "Bomb-run John" |
| Born | October 2, 1902 Montgomery, Alabama |
| Died | November 2, 1996 (aged 94) Montgomery, Alabama |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Service/branch | United States Navy |
| Rank | Rear Admiral |
| Unit | Naval aviation, USS Enterprise, Navy headquarters |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Other work | Gubernatorial, Senate, Vice Presidential and Presidential candidate |
Rear Admiral John Geraerdt Crommelin, Jr. (October 2, 1902 – November 2, 1996) was a prominent American naval officer and later a frequent political candidate who championed white supremacy.
Born in Montgomery, Alabama as eldest of five brothers, he graduated from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland in 1923. He grew up in Montgomery and in Elmore County, Alabama.
He saw combat at the Pacific during World War II. All of his brothers also graduated from the US Naval Academy and two of them were killed in action during World War II.
Crommelin earned a reputation as a courageous and skillful naval aviator and the nickname "bomb-run John". He served as an executive officer as well as air officer aboard the Enterprise and was chief of staff aboard the carrier Liscombe Bay when it was sunk in the Makin Island campaign off the Gilbert Islands.
In 1946, Captain Crommelin was given command of the light carrier USS Saipan.
In 1949, he was transferred to Navy headquarters in The Pentagon at the rank of captain during the period of time of military budget reductions and unification of the command of the services.
In Washington Captain Crommelin became a vocal critic of military politics, warning of the dangers of concentrating military authority in the hands of a few, despite being in active service. He publicly complained that the Defense Department was scuttling naval air power and showing improper favor to the Air Force and that "a Prussian General Staff system of the type employed by Hitler" was being imposed on the armed forces under unification.
During this Revolt of the Admirals, he made public some of the confidential correspondence of top Navy commanders who were critical of the Defense Departments designs to defund the Navy. Crommelin's opposition to the civilian political authority decisions to reduce the Navy and increase reliance on the Air Force placed him in a politically untenable position. Crommelin was publicly reprimanded by Navy Chief of Naval Operations Forrest P. Sherman and was transferred to San Francisco, California.
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