Duane R. Bushey (born May 3, 1944) is a retired senior sailor of the

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 ...

who served as the seventh

Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy The master chief petty officer of the Navy (MCPON ) is a unique Non-commissioned officer, non-commissioned rank and position of office of the United States Navy, which is designated as a special U.S. uniformed services pay grades, paygrade a ...

Early life

Following graduation from

Wicomico High School Wicomico High School (commonly abbreviated "Wi Hi") is a high school located in Salisbury, Wicomico County, Maryland, United States. It is one of four public high schools in Wicomico County along with James M. Bennett High School, Mardela Middl ...

Salisbury, Maryland Salisbury ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Wicomico County, Maryland, United States. Salisbury is the largest city in Eastern Shore of Maryland, the state's Eastern Shore region, with a population of 33,050 at the 2020 United States census ...

, Bushey enlisted in the

in June 1962.

Naval career

Bushey received recruit training at the Naval Training Center in

Great Lakes, Illinois Naval Station Great Lakes (NAVSTA Great Lakes) is the home of the United States Navy's only current boot camp, located near North Chicago, in Lake County, Illinois, along Lake Michigan. Important tenant commands include the Recruit Training C ...

, and completed Aviation Electrician "A" school in

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

. He first saw duty at the naval Air Test Facility at the Naval Air Station in

Patuxent River, Maryland The Patuxent River is a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay in the state of Maryland. There are three main river drainages for central Maryland: the Potomac River to the west passing through Washington, D.C., the Patapsco River to the northeas ...

, followed by further technical training in an advanced electronics "B" school. He then served on board the

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and hangar facilities for supporting, arming, deploying and recovering carrier-based aircraft, shipborne aircraft. Typically it is the ...

, with two follow-on tours as a flight instructor for fleet replacement navigators with Heavy Attack Squadron 123 at the Naval Air Station,

Whidbey Island Whidbey Island (historical spellings Whidby, Whitbey, or Whitby) is the largest of the islands composing Island County, Washington, Island County, Washington (state), Washington, in the United States, and the largest island in Washington stat ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

and Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 130 at the Naval Air Station in

Alameda, California Alameda ( ; ; Spanish for "Avenue (landscape), tree-lined path") is a city in Alameda County, California, United States, located in the East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), East Bay region of the Bay Area. The city is built on an informal archipe ...

, where he served as Celestial and Radar Navigation Instructor. Bushey then served as the Assistant Aircrew Division Officer for the Aircraft Ferry Squadron Thirty One in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

. While serving with VRF-31, he qualified as an overwater navigator in several aircraft, as flight engineer for

P-3 Orion The Lockheed P-3 Orion is a four-engined, turboprop anti-submarine and maritime surveillance aircraft developed for the United States Navy and introduced in the 1960s. It is based on the L-188 Electra commercial airliner by Lockheed; it is e ...

aircraft and bombardier/navigator for

A-6 Intruder The Grumman A-6 Intruder is a twinjet all-weather subsonic attack aircraft developed and manufactured by American aircraft company Grumman Aerospace. It was formerly operated by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. The A-6 was designed in ...

aircraft. Bushey was selected to attend the

United States Army Sergeants Major Academy The United States Army Sergeants Major Academy (USASMA) was established on 1 July 1972 at Fort Bliss, Texas, and began instruction in January, 1973. Its curriculum is designed to broaden the student's current knowledge base. This approach differs ...

Fort Bliss, Texas A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from La ...

in January 1980 and while there received the General Ralph E. Hanes Jr. Award for outstanding research. Following graduation in July 1980 he returned to VRF-31 as

command master chief Command master chief petty officer (CMDCM) is an enlisted rating in the United States Navy and U.S. Coast Guard, as well as the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. In the U.S. Navy, the command master chief petty officer is the senior enlisted ...

. Bushey served as the first Command Master Chief for USS Theodore Roosevelt CVN-71, arriving while the ship was still under construction, and is a "TR Plankowner". On September 9, 1988, Bushey became the seventh

. He has accumulated more than 6,000 flying hours and made more than 400 carrier landings.

Awards and decorations

*7 gold Service Stripes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bushey, Duane 1944 births Living people Master Chief Petty Officers of the United States Navy American maritime navigators Flight navigators Recipients of the Meritorious Service Medal (United States)