3. • Born 27 JAN 1900 in Poland to Jewish parents
• Immigrated to the U.S. in 1905 to escape anti-
Semitic Pogroms
• Had first job at 9 years of age for 3¢ an hour
• Became acquainted with U.S. Congressman
Adolph J. Sabath while delivering telegrams for
Western Union
• Earned Naval Academy appointment
4. Time at the Academy
• NAPS to prepare for entrance exams after
appointment
• A dedicated midshipman from the start
• On summer cruise found ways to make life
easier
• Later expressed frustration with the Academy
for failing to prepare midshipmen technically
5. Early Naval Career
• After commission: USS La Vallette (DD-315)
• Volunteered for submarine duty and was
initially rejected
• Translated Das Unterseeboot World War I
German Imperial Navy Admiral Hermann
Bauer
• At Pearl Harbor was “a leading figure in
putting the ship's electric alternators and
motors back into operating condition"
6. Atomic Energy
• Applied to be 1 of 4 junior naval officers sent
to the Manhattan Project
• Became an early convert to nuclear marine
propulsion
• Worked with Alvin M. Weinberg to develop
the pressurized water reactor for submarine
propulsion
• USS Nautilus
7. Making Admiral
• Was not selected when first put up for admiral
• Clay Blair and Time magazine
• Lawrence Halfstad
• Congressional pressure and threat of civilian
involvement in selection board
9. In the End
• Forced retirement
– 1982- 82 years old, 63 years of
service
– Served under 13 presidents
– New Secretary of the Navy
Lehman
– Final meeting with President
Reagan
• Despite all the controversy,
Rickover was always dedicated
to his country
• Was very dedicated to the
improving education standards
Although later in life declared himself a practicing Episcopalian
After immigrating lived in Manhattan for two years, then moved to Lawndale, a suburb of Chicago
Job was holding a light for a neighbor while he operated a machine
Although he was only third alternate for the appointment, he scored well on the entrance exams and gained admittance to the Academy
Picture: the USS Nautilus, shown arriving in New York in 1958.
Spent large part of savings on tuition
Was not prepared
Dropped out
Memorized the books on his own
Barely made the grades
Hospitalized with 14 other midshipmen at the end of plebe summer during an influenza outbreak
Seized the opportunity to study
Often studied in the shower after his roommates went to bed
Found coffins aboard and finding them more comfortable than the hammocks, decided to sleep in one
Found that the Academy served the fleet well in his time, but that it failed to adapt to the developing need for technical education
A few months after graduation
Soon made engineering officer by impressing his CO
knowing that young officers in the submarine service were advancing quickly, Rickover went to Washington and volunteered for submarine duty. His application was turned down due to his age, at that time 29 years old. Fortunately for Rickover, he ran into his former commanding officer from Nevada while leaving the building, who interceded successfully on Rickover's behalf.
his service as head of the Electrical Section in the Bureau of Ships brought him a Legion of Merit and gave him experience in directing large development programs, choosing talented technical people, and working closely with private industry
1933
Became a basic text for the U.S. Submarine Service
10 April 1942 to Pearl Harbor to coordinate repairs of the USS California’s electrical power plant
his service as head of the Electrical Section in the Bureau of Ships brought him a Legion of Merit and gave him experience in directing large development programs, choosing talented technical people, and working closely with private industry
to develop a nuclear electric generating plant
Although he was not initially selected, through the intercession of his wartime boss, Admiral Earle Mills, Rickover was finally sent as the deputy manager of the entire project, granting him access to all facilities, projects and reports.
In February 1949, he received an assignment to the Division of Reactor Development, Atomic Energy Commission, and then assumed control of the Navy's effort as Director of the Naval Reactors Branch in the Bureau of Ships, reporting to Mills. This twin role enabled him to lead the effort to develop the world's first nuclear-powered submarine, the USS Nautilus
Also oversaw the development of the first commercial pressurized water reactor nuclear power plant.
Could be put up only 2 consecutive years for admiral
Rejected both times because of his personality issues. Contemporaries often complained about his superior attitude and the way he talked down to both superiors and subordinates
Featured in Time. The article presented Rickover as combating naval indifference.
Rejected a second time for rear admiral which meant he could serve only one year more
Lawrence Halfstad, director of reactor development, worried about Rickover leaving the program at a time when it was developing so quickly and intervened on Rickover’s behalf. Called Blair who published another feature hinting at anti-Semitism in the selection board and accused the Navy of being unwilling to select technical specialists
for nearly the next three decades Rickover exercised tight control over the ships, technology, and personnel of the nuclear Navy, interviewing and approving or denying every prospective officer being considered for a nuclear ship.
Shows the way he had taken ownership of the nuclear power program and also his disagreeable and blunt nature
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=08c_1286630082
After a extraordinarily long career, forced into retirement by the new Secretary of the Navy Lehman
Following the discovery of structural flaws in the new Los Angeles class submarines General Dynamics Electric Boat Division billed the US Navy with the cost overrun. Outraged, Rickover publicly criticized Secretary Lehman for his settlement which involved the Navy paying most of the cost overrun despite it being General Dynamics’ mistake.
Ultimately, Lehman was able to force Rickover’s retirement because of his advanced age, singular focus and waning political clout regarding nuclear power, and strong, near-insubordinate stance against paying the fraudulently inflated submarine construction claims.
Rickover expressed his embitterment in a meeting with Lehman and President Reagan where he claimed of Lehman, “"He's a liar, he knows he is just doing the work of the contractors. The contractors want me fired because of all the claims and because I am the only one in the government who keeps them from robbing the taxpayers."
"I do not believe that nuclear power is worth it if it creates radiation. Then you might ask me why do I have nuclear powered ships. That is a necessary evil. I would sink them all. I am not proud of the part I played in it. I did it because it was necessary for the safety of this country… Unfortunately attempts to limit war have always failed. The lesson of history is when a war starts every nation will ultimately use whatever weapon it has available.”
“Our greatest responsibility, as parents and as citizens, is to give America's youngsters the best possible education. We need the best teachers and enough of them to prepare our young people for a future immeasurably more complex than the present, and calling for ever larger numbers of competent and highly trained men and women."