Ralph W. Cousins

Ralph W. Cousins (July 24, 1915 – August 5, 2009) was a United States Navy four star admiral and aviator. As an aircraft carrier pilot, Cousins led dive-bomber attacks against the Imperial Japanese Navy at the Battle of the Coral Sea in May 1942 for which he was awarded the Navy Cross. During the Vietnam War from 1967–1969, Cousins commanded the attack carrier strike force of five carriers stationed off the coast of Vietnam. In 1970, Cousins was promoted to four star admiral and appointed Vice Chief of Naval Operations. From 1972 to 1975, he commanded the US Atlantic Fleet and NATO forces.

Cousins retired from the navy in 1975 and served as president and executive of Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock until his retirement in 1985. He died on August 5, 2009 from complications from a fall in Newport News, Virginia where he had lived since his retirement. His wife of 60 years, Mary McBride, had died in 2007. He left no immediate survivors.