- Thomas Otterbein
Thomas G. Otterbein is a retired
captain of theUnited States Navy . A navalaviator , he held important aviation-related commands both at sea and on shore, including a stint as Executive Officer and acting Commanding Officer of theNavy Fighter Weapons School (Top Gun).Early life and career
Otterbein was born in
Bad Axe, Michigan . He entered theU.S. Naval Academy and graduated in1970 . After receiving his commission, he completed flight training and was designated a Naval Aviator in1973 .His first operational tour was with
Fighter Squadron 111 flying theF-4 Phantom II, where he made deployments to theMediterranean Sea and westernPacific Ocean aboard USS "Franklin D. Roosevelt" and USS "Kitty Hawk" respectively. Upon completion ofF-14 Tomcat training, his next sea tour was withFighter Squadron 51 , where he made an around the world cruise aboard USS "Carl Vinson". In recognition of his superior aeronautical skills and leadership abilities, Captain Otterbein was selected forF/A-18 Hornet training and subsequently became the Executive Officer ofFighter Squadron 161 aboard USS "Midway". Following that tour, he was the Executive Officer ofFighter Squadron 195 and had command of that squadron for eighteen months. [http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getpage.cgi?dbname=1999_record&page=E2145&position=all]Captain Otterbein successfully completed Nuclear Power Training and was soon back in the fleet, serving as Executive Officer of USS "Theodore Roosevelt". He subsequently assumed command of USS "Nashville" and led the ship through Operations Support/Uphold Democracy in
Haiti , earning theArmed Forces Expeditionary Medal and Battle Efficiency "E" Award. The crowning achievement of his career came when he reported as Commanding Officer, USS "Harry S. Truman".Trivia
*During his time as Commanding Officer of the
Navy Fighter Weapons School , Captain Otterbein was involved with the development of the script for the film "Top Gun".
*While Commanding Officer of VFA-195, (then) Commander Otterbein was accepted as a contestant on the television game showJeopardy , but deployment schedules prohibited his appearing on the show.External links
* [http://www.examiner.net/ussharrytruman/captain.html Profile of Captain Otterbein]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.