David L. McDonald; Former Chief of Naval Operations
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David L. McDonald, 91, U.S. chief of naval operations from 1963 to 1967, the period in which the Vietnam War was being escalated. He contended that aerial attacks on North Vietnam saved American lives in South Vietnam. The Navy that McDonald commanded was far larger than the one in service today, with 670,000 officers and enlisted personnel, 870 ships and 7,200 aircraft. A Naval Academy graduate in the class of 1928, he developed his career with a focus on naval aviation and served as commander of Navy forces in Europe and the Mediterranean. On Dec. 16 in Jacksonville Beach, Fla.
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