Herbert D. Riley

Herbert Douglas Riley
Nickname(s)	"Pat" or "Herb"
Born	(1904-12-24)December 24, 1904 Baltimore, Maryland, US
Died	January 17, 1973(1973-01-17) (aged 68) Kent Island, Maryland, US
Buried	United States Naval Academy Cemetery, Annapolis, Maryland
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Navy
Years of service	1927–1964
Rank	Vice admiral
Commands	Director of the Joint Staff Carrier Division One USS Makassar Strait (CVE-91) USS Coral Sea (CVA-43)
Battles/wars	World War II Pacific War Guadalcanal campaign Battle of Iwo Jima Okinawa campaign Cold War Cuban Missile Crisis
Awards	Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Flying Cross Bronze Star Medal
Relations	ADM John H. Towers (father-in-law)

Herbert Douglas Riley (December 24, 1904 – January 17, 1973) was a highly decorated officer in the United States Navy with the rank of Vice admiral. A United States Naval Academy graduate, he trained as naval aviator and distinguished himself first as commanding officer of the escort carrier USS Makassar Strait during the combats at Iwo Jima and Okinawa during World War II.^[1]

Following the War, he rose to the flag rank and held important staff assignments as Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Operations and Readiness and later as Director of the Joint Staff during Cuban Missile Crisis. Riley was a son-in-law of Admiral John H. Towers, pioneer naval aviator and later-Commander-in-Chief, United States Pacific Fleet.^[1]