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The rank of admiral (or full admiral, or four-star admiral) is the highest rank in the United States Coast Guard. It ranks above vice admiral (three-star admiral).

There have been 24 four-star admirals in the history of the U.S. Coast Guard. Of these, 23 achieved that rank while on active duty and one was promoted upon retirement in recognition of combat citations. All were commissioned via the United States Coast Guard Academy or its predecessor, the School of Instruction of the United States Revenue Cutter Service. Prior to the vice commandant of the Coast Guard being elevated to a four-star position in 2016, all four-star admirals in the U.S. Coast Guard held the position of commandant of the Coast Guard.

List of admirals

The following list of four-star admirals is sortable by last name, date of rank,^[1] number of years on active duty at four-star rank (Yrs),^[2] active-duty positions held while serving at four-star rank,^[3] year commissioned and source of commission,^[4] and number of years in commission when promoted to four-star rank (YC),^[5] and other biographical notes.^[6]

#	Name	Date of rank ^[1]	Position ^[3]	Yrs ^[2]	Commission ^[4]	YC ^[5]	Notes ^[6]
1	waescheRussell R. Waesche	1945-04-044 Apr 1945	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1936–1945.	1	1906 (USRCSSI)^[7]	39	(1886–1946)
2	farleyJoseph F. Farley	1946-01-011 Jan 1946	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1946–1949.	4	1912 (USRCSSI)^[7]	34	(1889–1974)
3	richmondAlfred C. Richmond	1960-06-011 Jun 1960	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1960–1962.	2	1924 (USCGA)	36	(1902–1984) Served as Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard from 1954 to 1960 in the rank of vice admiral.
4	rolandEdwin J. Roland	1962-06-011 Jun 1962	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1962–1966.	4	1929 (USCGA)	33	(1905–1985)
5	smithWillard J. Smith	1966-06-011 Jun 1966	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1966–1970.	4	1933 (USCGA)	33	(1910–2000) Superintendent, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, 1962–1965; U.S. Assistant Secretary of Transportation for Safety and Consumer Affairs, 1970–1971.
6	benderChester R. Bender	1970-06-011 Jun 1970	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1970–1974.	4	1936 (USCGA)	34	(1914–1996) Superintendent, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, 1965–1967.
7	silerOwen W. Siler	1974-06-011 Jun 1974	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1974–1978.	4	1943 (USCGA)	31	(1922–2007)
8	hayesJohn B. Hayes	1978-06-011 Jun 1978	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1978–1982.	4	1946 (USCGA)	32	(1924–2001)
9	graceyJames S. Gracey	1982-05-2828 May 1982	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1982–1986.	4	1949 (USCGA)	33	(1927–2020)
10	yostPaul A. Yost Jr.	1986-05-3030 May 1986	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1986–1990.	4	1951 (USCGA)	35	(1929–2022)
11	kimeJ. William Kime	1990-05-3131 May 1990	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1990–1994.	4	1957 (USCGA)	33	(1934–2006)
12	kramekRobert E. Kramek	1994-06-011 Jun 1994	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1994–1998.	4	1961 (USCGA)	33	(1939–2016)
13	loyJames M. Loy	1998-05-00May 1998	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1998–2002.	4	1964 (USCGA)	34	(1942– ) Administrator, Transportation Security Administration, 2002–2003; U.S. Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, 2003–2005.
14	collinsThomas H. Collins	2002-05-3030 May 2002	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 2002–2006.	4	1968 (USCGA)	34	(1946– )
15	allenThad W. Allen	2006-05-2525 May 2006	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 2006–2010. National Incident Commander, Deepwater Horizon oil spill, 2010.	4	1971 (USCGA)	35	(1949– ) Remained on active duty for 36 days after stepping down as commandant while serving as National Incident Commander, Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
16	pappRobert J. Papp	2010-05-2525 May 2010	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 2010–2014.	4	1975 (USCGA)	35	(1953– ) U.S. Special Representative for the Arctic, 2014–2017.
17	zunkunftPaul F. Zukunft	2014-05-3030 May 2014	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 2014–2018.	4	1977 (USCGA)	37	(1955– )
18	michelCharles D. Michel	2016-05-2424 May 2016	Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard, 2015–2018.	2	1985 (USCGA)	31	(1963– ) Served as Vice Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard from 2015 to 2016 in the rank of vice admiral. First career judge advocate officer to achieve four-star rank in any service.
19	rayCharles W. Ray	2018-05-2424 May 2018	Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard, 2018–2021.	3	1981 (USCGA)	37	(1959– )
20	schultzKarl L. Schultz	2018-06-011 Jun 2018	Commandant of the Coast Guard, 2018–2022.	4	1983 (USCGA)	35	(1961– )
21	faganLinda L. Fagan	2021-06-1818 Jun 2021	Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard, 2021–2022. Commandant of the Coast Guard, 2022–present.	4	1985 (USCGA)	36	(1963– ) First woman to achieve the rank of admiral in the Coast Guard; first woman to lead an armed service.
22	poulinSteven D. Poulin	2022-05-3131 May 2022	Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard, 2022–2024.	2	1984 (USCGA)	38	(1962– )
23	lundayKevin E. Lunday	2024-06-1313 June 2024	Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard, 2024–present.	1	1987 (USCGA)	37	(1965– )

Tombstone admirals

The Act of Congress of March 4, 1925, allowed officers in the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard to be promoted one grade upon retirement if they had been specially commended for performance of duty in actual combat. Combat citation promotions were colloquially known as "tombstone promotions" because they conferred the prestige of the higher rank but not the additional retirement pay, so their only practical benefit was to allow recipients to engrave a loftier title on their business cards and tombstones. The Act of Congress of February 23, 1942, enabled tombstone promotions to three- and four-star grades. Tombstone promotions were subsequently restricted to citations issued before January 1, 1947, and finally eliminated altogether effective November 1, 1959.

Any admiral who actually served in a grade while on active duty receives precedence on the retired list over any tombstone admiral holding the same retired grade. Tombstone admirals rank among each other according to the dates of their highest active duty grade.

The following list of tombstone admirals is sortable by last name, date of rank as vice admiral, date retired, and year commissioned.

	Name	Photo	Date of rank (VADM)	Date retired (ADM)	Commission ^[4]	Notes
1	oneillMerlin O'Neill^[8]		1950-01-011 Jan 1950	1954-06-011 Jun 1954	1921 (USCGA)	(1898–1981) Commandant of the Coast Guard, 1949–1954.

Timeline

The first full admiral in the United States Coast Guard was Russell R. Waesche, who served as commandant from 1936 to 1945 and was promoted to that rank on April 4, 1945. His successor as commandant, John Farley, also inherited the rank of admiral. After Farley retired on December 31, 1949, the commandant's rank was reduced to vice admiral, although Farley's successor, Merlin O'Neill, was promoted to full admiral upon retirement in recognition of combat citations. O'Neill's successor, Alfred C. Richmond, remained a vice admiral until the commandant's rank was again elevated to admiral on June 1, 1960, where it has remained ever since.^[9]

Legislation

The following list of Congressional legislation includes major acts of Congress pertaining to appointments to the grade of admiral in the United States Coast Guard.

Legislation	Citation	Summary
Act of March 21, 1945	59 Stat. 37	Authorized one grade of admiral, appointed from officers serving now or hereafter as commandant of the Coast Guard, until six months after the end of World War II (Russell R. Waesche, Joseph F. Farley) [made permanent for Waesche in 1946 (60 Stat. 59)].
Act of August 4, 1949	63 Stat. 498 63 Stat. 516 63 Stat. 558	Reduced rank of commandant of the Coast Guard to vice admiral, without reducing the grade of the current commandant (Joseph F. Farley). Authorized Coast Guard officers to retire with the rank but not the pay of the next higher grade if specially commended for performance of duty in actual combat on or before December 31, 1946 (Merlin O'Neill) [repealed in 1959 (73 Stat. 337)].
Act of May 14, 1960	74 Stat. 144	Increased rank of commandant of the Coast Guard to admiral, effective June 1, 1960.
Act of February 8, 2016	130 Stat. 33	Increased rank of vice commandant of the Coast Guard to admiral.

Notes

^ ^a ^b Dates of rank are taken, where available, from the officer's official biography (U.S. Coast Guard, Commandants of the U.S. Coast Guard).
^ ^a ^b The number of years on active duty at four-star rank is approximated by subtracting the year in the "Date of rank" column from the last year in the "Position" column.
^ ^a ^b Positions listed are those held by the officer when promoted to admiral. Dates listed are for the officer's full tenure, which may predate promotion to four-star rank or postdate retirement from active duty.
^ ^a ^b ^c Sources of commission are listed in parentheses after the year of commission, and include the United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA) and the United States Revenue Cutter Service School of Instruction (USRCSSI).
^ ^a ^b The number of years in commission before being promoted to four-star rank is approximated by subtracting the year in the "Commission" column from the year in the "Date of rank" column.
^ ^a ^b Notes include years of birth and death; awards of the Medal of Honor, Congressional Gold Medal, Presidential Medal of Freedom, or honors of similar significance; major government appointments; university presidencies or equivalents; familial relationships with other four-star officers or significant government officials such as U.S. Presidents, cabinet secretaries, U.S. Senators, or state governors; and unusual career events such as premature relief or death in office.
^ ^a ^b Graduated from the Revenue Cutter Service School of Instruction, which became the United States Coast Guard Academy in 1915.
^ "Merlin O'Neill, USCG". www.uscg.mil. Archived from the original on 2008-09-22.
^ U.S. Coast Guard, Commandants of the U.S. Coast Guard