Frank E. Petersen

Frank E. Petersen Jr.
Born	(1932-03-02)March 2, 1932 Topeka, Kansas
Died	Stevensville, Maryland
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Navy United States Marine Corps
Years of service	1950-1952 (USN), 1952-1988 (USMC)
Rank	Lieutenant General
Commands held	VMFA-212 VMFA-314
Battles/wars	Korean War Vietnam War
Awards	Distinguished Service Medal Defense Superior Service Medal Legion of Merit with Combat "V" Distinguished Flying Cross Purple Heart
Other work	DuPont DeNemours Inc., VP of Corporate Aviation National Marrow Donor Program, Chairman

Frank Emmanuel Petersen Jr. (USMC) (March 2, 1932 – August 25, 2015) was a United States Marine Corps Lieutenant General. He was the first African-American Marine Corps aviator and the first African-American Marine Corps general.

Petersen retired from the Marine Corps in 1988 after 38 years of service. "At the time of his retirement he was by date of aviator designation the senior ranking aviator in the U.S. Marine Corps and the United States Navy with respective titles of 'Silver Hawk' and 'Gray Eagle'. His date of designation as an aviator also precedes all other aviators in the U.S. Air Force and Army."

In 2010, President Obama appointed Petersen to the Board of Visitors to the United States Naval Academy.

Personal life

Frank E. Petersen was born on March 2, 1932 in Topeka, Kansas. He married Eleanor "Ellie" Burton in 1955, while he was a pilot on rotation for test flights in dropping an atomic bomb and was called for a flight on the night of his wedding. Their marriage ended in divorce.

Petersen died at his home in Stevensville, Maryland on August 25, 2015 from lung cancer.

Military career

When Petersen aced the United States Navy entrance exam in 1950, the recruiter told him he would make an "great steward." But motivated by the recent Korean War combat death of Jesse Brown, the Navy’s first black aviator, Petersen vowed to be a pilot. After serving as a seaman apprentice and served as an electronics technician. In 1951, he entered the Naval Aviation Cadet Program. After completing flight training, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps in 1952.

Petersen served combat tours in two wars, Korea (1953) and Vietnam (1968). His first tactical assignment was with Marine Fighter Squadron 212 during the Korean War. He would fly a total of 350 combat missions and over 4,000 hours in various fighter/attack aircraft.

He held command positions at all levels of Marine Corps aviation, commanding a Marine Fighter Squadron, a Marine Aircraft Group and a Marine Aircraft Wing. He was also the first African-American to command a fighter squadron, a fighter air group, an air wing and a major base.

On February 23, 1979, he was promoted to brigadier general, becoming the first African-American general in the Marine Corps. Petersen relinquished duties as the Commanding General, Marine Corps Combat Development Command, Quantico, Virginia on July 8, 1988. He served as the Special Assistant to the Chief of Staff from July 8–31 and retired from the Marine Corps on August 1, 1988. Upon his retirement, he was presented the Distinguished Service Medal for exceptionally meritorious service as the Commanding General, Marine Corps Combat Development Command, Quantico, Virginia from June 1986 to July 1988.

Awards

Petersen's decorations include:

Naval Aviator Badge
1st Row		Navy Distinguished Service Medal	Defense Superior Service Medal
2nd Row	Legion of Merit w/ valor device	Distinguished Flying Cross	Purple Heart	Meritorious Service Medal
3rd Row	Air Medal w/ 1 award star &Strike/Flight numeral "10"	Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal w/ valor device	Air Force Commendation Medal	Combat Action Ribbon
4th Row	Navy Presidential Unit Citation	Navy Unit Commendation	Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation	National Defense Service Medal w/ 1 service star
5th Row	Korean Service Medal w/ 2 service stars	Vietnam Service Medal w/ 4 service stars	Navy Sea Service Deployment Ribbon	Korean Presidential Unit Citation
6th Row	Vietnam Gallantry Cross unit citation	Vietnam Civil Actions unit citation	United Nations Korea Medal	Vietnam Campaign Medal

See also

• List of African-American firsts
• Jesse L. Brown, first African-American U.S. Navy aviator

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army Center of Military History. This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Marine Corps.

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