In World War II, Holloway served in destroyers on North Atlantic convoy duty, in North African waters and in the Pacific where he participated in the
Battle of Saipan,
Battle of Tinian,
Battle of Palau and the
Battle of Leyte Gulf. He was gunnery officer of the
destroyer , which at the
Battle of Surigao Strait took part in a night torpedo attack which sank the Japanese
battleship , assisted in the destruction of the destroyer , attacked the
cruiser with torpedoes, and then the following day shot down two Japanese
Zeroes at short range. For this service, he received the
Bronze Star Medal and
Navy Commendation Medal. After World War II, Holloway became a
naval aviator. He made two carrier tours to
Korea, flying Grumman
F9F-2 Panther jets on combat missions against the North Korean and Chinese Communists. He assumed command of
VF-52 when his commanding officer was shot down. He was awarded the
Distinguished Flying Cross and three
Air Medals during the Korean War, and shared in a
Navy Unit Commendation awarded to the
aircraft carrier . In 1958, as commanding officer of
VA-83, flying Douglas
A-4 Skyhawks from the carrier , Holloway covered the
Marine landings in Lebanon and flew patrols in support of U.S. operations there until
Essex was redeployed through the
Suez Canal to join the
Seventh Fleet in the
Formosa Straits. There, he flew missions in defense of
Quemoy and
Matsu against the
threat of a Chinese Communist invasion of those offshore islands. From 1965 to 1967, Holloway commanded the carrier , the Navy's first, and at that time, only nuclear-powered aircraft carrier for two combat cruises in the
Gulf of Tonkin against the North Vietnamese.
Enterprise established a record for the number of combat sorties flown, won the
Battle Efficiency "E" award for the best carrier in the fleet, and was awarded a Navy Unit Commendation. Holloway twice received the
Legion of Merit for his leadership. Returning to the Pentagon, in 1968 Holloway established the Navy's Nuclear Powered Carrier Program, building the
supercarrier and paving the way for nine more supercarriers of
this class. He was awarded the
Navy Distinguished Service Medal for this achievement. In 1970, Holloway was commander of the Carrier Striking Force of the
Sixth Fleet and deployed to the Eastern Mediterranean to conduct carrier air operations in reaction to the
Syrian invasion of
Jordan. After the strong U.S. military response brought about the withdrawal of the Syrian forces, his task force covered the evacuation of an Army MASH (
Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) unit from Amman, Jordan, by a Marine Expeditionary Group. For his performance of duty Holloway was awarded a second Navy Distinguished Service Medal and shared in a
Meritorious Unit Commendation awarded to his
flagship, the carrier . Holloway took command of the Seventh Fleet in 1972 during the Vietnam War, and personally led a cruiser-destroyer gunfire strike force during the
Battle of Haiphong Harbor. During
Operation Linebacker II, he directed the massive carrier strikes against
Hanoi, which were a part of the intensive joint air effort which led to the Vietnam cease-fire in 1973. Under his command, the Seventh Fleet performed the airborne
mine clearing operations in North Vietnam ports in accordance with the terms of the
Paris Peace Accords. For duty as Commander, Seventh Fleet, he received a third Navy Distinguished Service Medal. He then served as
Vice Chief of Naval Operations from 1973 to 1974. As
Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) from 1974 to 1978, Holloway was a member of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), and served as CNO during the evacuation of
Cyprus; the rescue of the merchant ship and its crew, and punitive strike operations against the
Cambodian forces involved in its seizure; the evacuation of U.S. nationals from Lebanon; and the
Korean demilitarized zone incident in August 1976, which led to an ultimatum and an armed standoff between the Allied and North Korean armies before the North Koreans backed down. For this service, Holloway was presented a fourth Navy Distinguished Service Medal and two awards of the
Defense Distinguished Service Medal.
Post-Navy career After retiring from the navy in 1978, Holloway was a consultant to
Paine Webber, Inc. and served until 1988 as president of the Council of American-Flag Ship Operators, a national association of U.S.
merchant marine companies. In 1980 he chaired the Special Operations Review Group which investigated the aborted
Iranian hostage rescue attempt. In 1985 he served as executive director of Vice President
George H. W. Bush's Task Force on Combating Terrorism, and was a member of the President's Blue Ribbon Commission on Defense Management. In 1986, he was appointed as a Special Envoy of the Vice President to the Middle East. Later, he was a member of the Commission on Merchant Marine and Defense and the Defense Commission on Long Term Integrated Strategy. In 1985 Holloway was the technical advisor to the film
Top Gun. Holloway was chairman of the Academic Advisory Board of the United States Naval Academy, chairman of the Association of Naval Aviation, a director of the
Olmsted Foundation, a trustee of the
George C. Marshall Foundation, served on the Board of Visitors and Governors of St. John's College and served in a presidential appointment as US Representative to the
South Pacific Commission. In 1994, he received the triennial Modern Patriot Award from the
General Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, and in 1997 the National
Navy League Award for Outstanding Civilian Leadership. In 1998, he was elected to the National Amateur Wrestling Hall of Fame. In 2000, he was selected by the US Naval Academy Alumni Association to receive the Distinguished Graduate Award for service to the Navy and the Naval Academy. He was enshrined in the
National Museum of Naval Aviation's Hall of Honor in 2004. Holloway was conspicuous in his personal support for the Navy's official history programs run by the
Naval History & Heritage Command. His grant made the Online
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships Project possible, thereby opening one of the most important US naval history resources to a worldwide audience. He was chairman emeritus of the
Naval Historical Foundation and the
Historic Annapolis Foundation, a trustee of Saint James School, and an emeritus member of the board of the
Mariners' Museum. He was a member of the
Society of the Cincinnati, the
Brook Club (New York City),
Maryland Club (Baltimore, Maryland),
New York Yacht Club,
Annapolis Yacht Club, and the
Metropolitan Club of Washington, D.C., where he served as president in 1992. ==Awards and decorations==