Frank Jack Fletcher (April 29, 1885 – April 25, 1973) was an admiral in the United States Navy during World War II. Fletcher commanded five different task forces through WWII; he was the operational task force commander at the pivotal battles of the Coral Sea and Midway, which collectively resulted in the sinking of five Japanese fleet carriers. In 1914, then Lieutenant Fletcher was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in the battle at Veracruz. He was the nephew of Admiral Frank Friday Fletcher, who was also awarded the Medal of Honor for actions at Veracruz. Early life and early Navy career Fletcher was born in Marshalltown, Iowa, on April 29, 1885. Appointed to the US Naval Academy from his native state in 1902, he graduated from Annapolis on February 12, 1906, served two years at sea, then required by law, and commissioned as an Ensign on February 13, 1908. His classmates included Arthur L. Bristol, William L. Calhoun, William A. Glassford, Charles C. Hartigan, Aubrey W. Fitch, Robert L. Ghormley, Isaac C. Kidd, John S. McCain Sr., Leigh Noyes, Ferdinand L. Reichmuth, Raymond A. Spruance, John H. Towers, Russell Willson, and Thomas Withers. Following graduation from the Naval Academy in 1906, he served in battleships and , operating in the Atlantic. After a year in on special service, he reported to , of the Atlantic Fleet in December 1908. In August 1909, he was assigned to , his duty drafting men for the Pacific Fleet and transporting them on board to Cavite. In November 1909, he was assigned to the destroyer , operating as part of the Asiatic Torpedo Flotilla. Fletcher assumed command of the destroyer in April 1910, and in March 1912, he returned to Chauncey as her commanding officer. In December 1912, he was transferred to the battleship . In April 1914, on board Florida, the flagship of his uncle Frank Friday Fletcher, during the occupation of Veracruz, Mexico. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for the rescue of refugees on the transport Esperanza. Detached from Florida in July 1914, he served briefly in Tennessee before reporting as Aide and Flag Lieutenant on the staff of the Commander in Chief, US Atlantic Fleet in July 1914. After a year at this post, he returned to the Naval Academy for duty in the Executive Department. World War I and post-war period Following the outbreak of