Hyland was designated a naval aviator three years after his graduation with the Naval Academy class of 1934. He was with Patrol Squadron 102 at the outbreak of World War II, and participated in the defense of the Philippines, engagements in the Netherlands East Indies, and in the final retreat to Australia. From 1942-44 he was the assistant operations officer at the Naval Air Station, Anacostia, D.C., and in this position served as the private pilot to CNO Admiral Ernest J. King. He finished out the war as Commander Air Group Ten. He had two tours at the Naval Air Test Center Patuxent River, first as assistant director of flight test (1946-49), then as director of the tactical test division (1951-53). During a 1948 flight demonstration before a crowd of dignitaries, his plane collided with an osprey and he was forced to bail out. He commanded the attack aircraft carrier USS Saratoga (CVA-60) in 1958-59 and Carrier Division Four in 1962-63. In this concluding volume Hyland recalls his tours as Commander Seventh Fleet from 1965-67 and Commander in Chief U.S. Pacific Fleet from 1967-70, both during the peak intensity of the Vietnam War. Among many topics covered are the Market Time Operation, conduct of the air war in North Vietnam, control of the war from Washington, Admiral Elmo Zumwalt and his Z-grams, Admiral Hyman Rickover, and Secretary of the Navy John Chafee. Of special interest is his involvement in the 1968 Pueblo incident. A letter he wrote to the Secretary of the Navy endorsing the outcome of the court of inquiry into the capture of this ship is included as an appendix.

As told by: John J. Hyland