It is with deep regret that I inform you of the passing of Admiral James Robert Hogg on 2 January 2025 at age 90. Admiral Hogg entered the U.S. Naval Academy in June 1952 and served as a surface warfare officer until his retirement in May 1991 as the U.S. military representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Military Committee. His commands included USS
England (DLG-22), Destroyer Squadron THIRTY-ONE (DESRON 31), Destroyer Squadron SEVEN (DESRON 7), Cruiser Destroyer Group ONE (CRUDESGRU 1)/Task Force 75, and U.S. Seventh Fleet. He made three deployments to the Vietnam War zone. Following retirement from active duty, he subsequently served 18 years as the director of the Chief of Naval Operations’ (CNO’s) Strategic Studies Group (SSG) for a cumulative 57 years of service to the U.S. Navy. He was named a U.S. Naval Academy Distinguished Graduate in 2018.
Admiral Hogg’s father, James Henry Hogg, was a 1927 Naval Academy graduate who was awarded a Silver Star while in command of destroyer USS
Yarnall (DD-541) in operations in the Western Pacific from Palau to the Battle of Leyte Gulf. The ship shot down four Japanese planes and possibly two more, while avoiding two torpedoes and two bombs. James H. Hogg retired as a rear admiral. Young James R. “Jimmy” Hogg wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps to the Naval Academy and to command destroyers. He lived his dream—and beyond.
James R. Hogg took the oath of office at the U.S. Naval Academy on 10 June 1952, by way of Severn Prep School to prepare for the academy entrance exams. According to the
Lucky Bag yearbook, Midshipman Hogg displayed a “genial manner” and a “quick smile,” as well as an “ability to render a sincere suggestion to any problem and meet the trials of a mid with a fresh and energetic approach,” foreshadowing the rest of his career. He showed a “special flair for the liberal arts phase of the education.” He was a letterman in squash and adept at all racket sports. He graduated on 1 June 1956 with a bachelor of science in naval science (like all academy graduates at the time) and was commissioned an ensign the same day.
In August 1956, Ensign Hogg reported to the Naval Amphibious Base, Coronado, California, for duty under instruction. In October 1956, he was assigned to amphibious attack cargo ship USS
Union (AKA-196) based in San Diego, California, serving as deck division officer, gunnery officer, communications officer, and navigator. He was promoted to lieutenant (junior grade) in December 1957.
Union made two deployments to the Western Pacific (August 1957–February 1958 and April–November 1959), during which the ship participated in multiple major amphibious exercises during a period of high tensions in the Taiwan Straits.
In November 1959, Lieutenant (j.g.) Hogg reported to Naval Mine Warfare School, Naval Base Charleston, South Carolina. In January 1960, he was assigned as executive officer and navigator of Charleston-based minesweeper USS
Fearless (MSO-442), which at that time was deploying to the Mediterranean every other year. He was promoted to lieutenant in June 1960.
In June 1961, Lieutenant Hogg reported to the staff of Commander, Amphibious Force, Pacific Fleet, serving as aide and flag lieutenant. In April 1963, he reported to the Anti-Air Warfare Training Center, San Diego, for duty under instruction. In June 1963, he was assigned to San Diego–based guided missile destroyer USS
Robison (DDG-12), serving as operations officer. After escorting aircraft carriers to and from Hawaii,
Robison entered overhaul at Long Beach before deploying to the Western Pacific from August 1964 to February 1965.
In May 1965, Lieutenant Hogg reported to the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations (OPNAV) as assistant secretary to the CNO for Joint Chiefs of Staff Matters (OP-004S). In June 1965, he was designated for command of destroyers. In June 1967, he reported to the Air Command and Staff College, Air University, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama, where he was promoted to lieutenant commander in August 1967 and graduated with distinction in 1968, concurrently earning a master’s degree in business administration from the George Washington University. In June 1968, he reported to Naval Schools Command, Mare Island, Vallejo, California, for duty under instruction.
In July 1968, Lieutenant Commander Hogg assumed duty as executive officer of guided missile destroyer leader USS
King (DLG-10, later DDG-41). While deployed to the Gulf of Tonkin in the spring of 1969,
King served as PIRAZ (positive identification radar advisory zone) and SAR (search-and-rescue) ship. On 23 May 1968, a fuel-line rupture in front of the 2A Boiler ignited a severe fire in the after fireroom, resulting in the deaths of four boiler technicians and injuries to multiple other sailors. After repairs at Subic Bay,
King returned to the Gulf of Tonkin on 27 May. During this period, there was a rash of fires in ships with 1,200-pound steam plants, requiring the Navy to take fleet-wide corrective action.
In November 1969, Lieutenant Commander Hogg reported as operations officer on the staff of Commander, Cruiser Destroyer Flotilla NINE. Although the staff was based in San Diego during this period, it was almost continuously deployed to the South China Sea/Gulf of Tonkin, embarked on guided-missile light cruiser USS
Oklahoma City (CLG-5), which also served as the Seventh Fleet flagship. Hogg was promoted to commander in March 1970.
In June 1970, Commander Hogg reported to the staff of Commander, Cruiser Destroyer Force Pacific Fleet, preparing surface combatants for deployment to the Vietnam War zone. He served on the staff as long-range planning and Net Assessments Group (long-term capabilities assessments) officer.
In October 1972, Commander Hogg assumed command of guided missile destroyer leader USS
England (DLG-22, later CG-22), while deployed to the Western Pacific and Vietnam (May–December 1972).
England was awarded a Meritorious Unit Commendation for this deployment and was underway in the region again from June 1973 to January 1974, after the Vietnam Peace Accords had been signed. Hogg was promoted to captain in July 1974 and turned over command of
England to Commander John Poindexter (later to be National Security Advisor in the Reagan administration) in October 1974. Hogg also held command of DESRON 31 from March to July 1974. He subsequently reported to Bureau of Naval Personnel as executive assistant and senior aide to the Chief of Naval Personnel.
In December 1977, Captain Hogg assumed command of DESRON 7, which in January and February of 1979 participated in the evacuation of American citizens during the Iranian revolution. In April 1979, he was designated a rear admiral for duty in a billet commensurate with that rank, reporting to OPNAV as the director of Military Personnel and Training Division (OP-13). He was promoted to rear admiral on 1 August 1980.
In August 1982, Rear Admiral Hogg assumed command of CRUDESGRU 1, based in San Diego and deploying to the Western Pacific as Task Force 75. In May 1983, he was designated a vice admiral for duty in a billet commensurate with that rank and assumed command of U.S. Seventh Fleet, embarked on flagship USS
Blue Ridge (LCC-19) in Yokosuka, Japan, as part of the Forward Deployed Naval Force. In April 1985, he returned to the Pentagon and OPNAV as the director of Naval Warfare (OP-095, later N7) He was designated an admiral (four-star) on 1 May 1988 and assumed duty as U.S. representative to the NATO Military Committee in Brussels, Belgium, during a period of major NATO transition following the fall of the Berlin Wall and with the end of the Soviet Union. Admiral Hogg retired on 1 May 1991.
Admiral Hogg’s awards include the Distinguished Service Medal (three awards); Legion of Merit (three awards); Meritorious Service Medal (two awards); Navy Commendation Medal; Meritorious Unit Commendation (USS
England); Navy Expeditionary Medal (Indian Ocean); Battle Efficiency Ribbon; National Defense Service Medal (two awards); Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (Korea); Vietnam Service Medal (five campaign stars); Humanitarian Service Medal; Sea Service Deployment Ribbon; Republic of Korea Order of National Security Merit Gugseon Medal; Japanese Second Class Order of the Rising Sun (star medal and badge); Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal; and Expert Pistol Medal.
After retiring from active duty, Admiral Hogg served for four years as the president of the National Security Industrial Association (NSIA), a major defense industry group of some 400 companies, several thousand individual members, and 19 chapters across the United States. NSIA was stablished at the end of World War II by James Forrestal, whose intent was to bring industry and military members together to ensure maintenance of a vibrant military-industrial complex. This was accomplished under NSIA’s umbrella.
In 1995, Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Jeremy M. Boorda asked Admiral Hogg to return to the Navy as a senior civilian to serve as director of the Strategic Studies Group (SSG). This became Admiral Hogg’s second career. He served as the director for 18 years, transforming the SSG from strategic studies into a research center that generated future warfighting concepts at the operational level of naval warfare. Admiral Hogg retired from the SSG in 2013, culminating a career of naval service (as commissioned officer and civilian) that totaled 57 years and spanned seven decades (1956–2013). He served as an operator, leader, mentor, strategist, and innovator. An immersive oral history covering Admiral Hogg’s SSG period is available
here.
From 2013 to 2023, Admiral Hogg served as senior advisor to the Naval War College Foundation, residing with the foundation’s staff in Luce Hall on the college campus, with a focus on Naval War College professional development.
In addition to his military awards, Admiral Hogg was awarded the Navy Distinguished Civilian Award in recognition of his SSG service. Other awards include NSIA’s Vice Admiral Charles E. Weakly Award for Anti-Submarine Warfare Excellence (1991); the City of Philadelphia’s Betsy Ross Freedom Award (1992); Severn School’s Roland M. Teel Distinguished Graduate Award (1994); the IEEE Medal for “Outstanding Contributions to Electro-Magnetic Launch Technology for Rail Gun Development” (2014); the Naval War College Foundation’s Sentinel of the Sea Award (2018); and the Naval Order of the United States’ Admiral George Dewey Award (2019). Of the many awards for his active duty and civilian service, he was most proud of his Distinguished Graduate Award from the U.S. Naval Academy in 2018.
Since his retirement from active duty, the Navy has also recognized Admiral Hogg’s leadership and excellence in creativity and strategic thinking through the establishment of the Admiral James Hogg Distinguished Visitor Center at the Navy Warfare Development Command (2010); the Admiral James Hogg Future Forces Gallery at the Naval War College; the Admiral James Hogg Library and Artifacts Collection at the Naval War College’s Mahan Center; the Admiral James Hogg Rail Gun Firing Line at the Naval Surface Warfare Center Division Dahlgren (2018): and the Admiral James Hogg Cyber and Innovation Policy Institute at the Naval War College (2019).
Admiral Hogg’s volunteer leadership service included the following: chairman of the board, Surface Navy Association (1994–2020); trustee, Naval Academy Foundation (Athletic and Scholarship) (1993–2021); president, Rhode Island Naval Academy Alumni Chapter (2000–2015); trustee-at-large, Naval Academy Alumni Association (1980–1984); member, “Curriculum 21” Review Committee, Naval Academy (1996); member, board of control, U.S. Naval Institute (1979–1981); member, board of directors, Atlantic Council (1998–2007): member, Global Counter-Terrorism Steering Committee, Center for Strategic and International Studies (1992–2016); member, board of directors, Newport Historical Society (1998–2007); member, board of directors, Newport Music Festival (1996–2017); member, board of directors, Gordon School of Engineering and Leadership, Northeastern University (2012–16); and member, technical advisory committee, Center for Naval Analysis (1991–95).
Few officers can claim a career as profoundly consequential as Admiral Hogg, both during and after active duty. He didn’t start in the most glamorous assignments—an attack transport and a minesweeper—but his performance quickly stood out to identify him as flag lieutenant material, and from then on it was non-stop action. He went on to serve 11 tours of duty at sea: six as a junior officer and five in command. These tours comprised 22 of his 35 years of active duty, including 14 deployments: 11 to the Western Pacific and Indian Ocean (three included the Vietnam War Zone), two to the Caribbean, and one to the Mediterranean. His tours in the Gulf of Tonkin had significant impact on the operations of cruisers and destroyers during the war. During his tour as executive officer of USS
King, his ship suffered a fatal fire, but his lessons learned helped the Navy fix a fleet-wide problem. His last sea tour was as commander of U.S. Seventh Fleet at the peak (and culmination) of the Cold War (1983–85) and included very realistic exercises in close proximity to the Soviet Union to convince the Russians they could not win. Ashore, as director of Navy Personnel Policy and Programs (OP13), he was architect of the Navy’s pay, benefits, and retention “revival” (1980–83), and as director of Naval Warfare (OP-095), he focused on Navy requirements as related to combat capabilities. In his last tour, he served at the highest international level of military planning and policy development as U.S. representative to the NATO Military Committee as the Cold War suddenly ended. Admiral Hogg’s second career as director of the SSG was in many ways as profound as active duty. Working directly for the CNO, he transformed the SSG into an incubator of revolutionary warfighting concepts, whose creative disruption was not always appreciated by the Navy bureaucracy. He established the Junior Fellows program with SSG XV, from which most of the truly innovative ideas originated. Perhaps even more influential than the annual SSG report were Admiral Hogg’s close work with, and mentorship of, 450 officers and civilians in their professional development, setting them up to be leaders of the near future. This included 168 0-6–level officers, 47 of whom achieved flag rank. During his time with the SSG, he was identified as one of the Navy’s most talented and creative thinkers. His extraordinarily prodigious volunteer service was also noteworthy. Despite all his success, he remained humble, always taking the time to make everyone he encountered at every level feel special. He once said, “I never wanted to retire,” and he never really did. Admiral Hogg absolutely loved the Navy and being on a U.S. Navy ship at sea. Even so, his career entailed enormous sacrifice on the part of his family, for which the Navy and nation should remain profoundly grateful, for his positive impact on the Navy will last for a very long time.
On a personal note, I first encountered then–Vice Admiral Hogg when he was OP-095 and I was a lieutenant and CNO intelligence briefer. The briefers were amused that the senior officers who regularly attended the morning CNO operations/intelligence briefs were Admirals Butcher, Bacon, and Hogg. Nevertheless, I noted that Vice Admiral Hogg could ask very pointed questions, but always with a twinkle in his eye, focused on educating the briefer to focus on the “so what?” and future implications of the matter in question. In 2003, I had the privilege to be selected as a member of SSG XXIII, the first intelligence officer to serve as a Senior Fellow. It was a truly mind-expanding (even mind-blowing) year, much due to the leadership of Admiral Hogg. He relentlessly encouraged and stimulated the fellows in creative and innovative thinking, which would serve them, and the Navy, even after our time on the SSG. Admiral Hogg was the kind of leader who engendered such respect and loyalty that you never wanted to let him down—never a cross word, always focused on bringing out the best in everyone. We kept in occasional communication over the years, especially during my time as Director of Naval History, as we shared a common inability to quit serving the Navy after active duty. In our last communication a couple months ago, he told me I needed to break his 57-year record of service, a tall order. Like much of the Navy, I mourn the passing of this great officer, perhaps most of all because he was a man of honor, something in short supply these days.
Funeral services will be held at the U.S. Naval Academy at a date to be determined.
Rest in Peace, Admiral Hogg.