David Brooks Robinson (born 26 October 1939) is a retired

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

vice admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...

. He served as

commander, Naval Surface Force Pacific The Commander, Naval Surface Force Pacific (COMNAVSURFPAC) is the type commander for the Surface Force under the United States Pacific Fleet. The COMNAVSURFPAC is also the Commander, Naval Surface Forces (COMNAVSURFOR) and the Commander, Surf ...

from 1993 to 1996. Robinson was awarded the

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Naval Service's second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is equivalent to the Army ...

for his actions as the commanding officer of a patrol gunboat in

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

Early life and education

Born in

Alexandria, Louisiana Alexandria is the ninth-largest city in the state of Louisiana and is the parish seat and largest city of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River of the South, Red River ...

and raised in

Denton, Texas Denton is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Denton County, Texas, Denton County. With a population of 139,869 as of 2020, it is the List of cities in Texas by population, 20th-most populous city in Texas, the List of Un ...

, Robinson graduated from Denton Senior High School in 1958. He then studied at

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

for one year before being appointed to the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...

in 1959. Robinson graduated in June 1963 with a B.S. degree in naval science. He later earned an M.S. degree in oceanography from the

Naval Postgraduate School Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a Naval command with a graduate university mission, operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California. The NPS mission is to provide "defense-focused graduate education, including clas ...

in October 1969. His thesis was entitled '' Seiching in Monterey Bay''.

Military career

A career surface warfare officer, Robinson commanded the patrol gunboats from November 1969 to March 1971 and from March 1971 to September 1971 in South Vietnam. During a patrol mission up the Bồ Đề River on 11 August 1970, ''Canon'' came under simultaneous fire from enemy forces concealed on both shores. Despite a broken leg and shrapnel wounds from a rocket explosion, Robinson directed return fire until the attack was suppressed. He then remained at his post strapped to a upright stretcher until ''Canon'' was safely moored at a forward base upstream. Robinson was subsequently awarded the Navy Cross for his actions. Robinson served as the executive officer of the guided missile destroyer from October 1974 to April 1976. He then served as the commanding officer of the guided missile destroyer from April 1976 to July 1978. Robinson later served as the commanding officer of the guided missile cruiser USS ''Richmond K. Turner'' from January 1983 to July 1984. As a flag officer, Robinson commanded Cruiser Destroyer Group 8 from July 1988 to August 1989. He then served as Vice Director and Director for Operational Plans and Interoperability on the Joint Staff from September 1989 to December 1991, which included Pentagon oversight and analysis of

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

operations. Robinson next became Deputy Commander-in-Chief and Chief of Staff for the U.S. Pacific Fleet in January 1992. In April 1993, Robinson was promoted to vice admiral and assumed command of the Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet.

Personal

Robinson married Juliet Gene Kirkpatrick (22 March 1940 – 12 October 2005) on 1 August 1964 in Denton, Texas. They have two sons and five grandchildren.

References

1939 births Living people People from Alexandria, Louisiana People from Denton, Texas Texas A&M University alumni United States Naval Academy alumni Naval Postgraduate School alumni United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States) United States Navy personnel of the Gulf War Recipients of the Meritorious Service Medal (United States) Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Navy admirals Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal {{US-navy-bio-stub