on June 15. Admiral Wright also made the arrangements for United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom Winthrop Aldrich to present a bronze plaque of John Paul Jones from the Naval Historical Center to the British government, initiating his longtime association with the famous naval hero of the American Revolution. During a high-level conference in Washington from October 20 to November 4, 1953, Wright was informed that CINCNELM was to become a subordinate command of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet reporting directly to Admiral Lynde D. McCormick, the Commander-in-Chief U.S. Atlantic Fleet (CINCLANTFLT). Also, Wright would become the head of NATO's Eastern Atlantic Area, reporting to Admiral McCormick, the first Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic (SACLANT). Jeruald Wright was promoted to the rank of Admiral effective April 1, 1954. Atlantic Command Admiral Wright's final command assignment proved to be the most challenging undertaking in his career as he literally took on three concurrent roles, namely Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet (CINCLANTFLT), Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Atlantic Command (CINCLANT) and Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic (SACLANT) of NATO's Allied Command Atlantic (ACLANT). While his nomination to become CINCLANTFLT and CINCLANT was made by the President of the United States, subject to the advice and consent of the United States Senate, Wright's appointment to become SACLANT was subject to the approval of the North Atlantic Council. Fortunately, Wright was a known commodity since he had served as the deputy U.S. representative to NATO's Standing Group from November 1950 to February 1952. President Dwight D. Eisenhower noted in his February 1, 1954 announcement: Wright assumed command of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet, the U.S. Atlantic Command, and Allied Command Atlantic on April 12, 1954, relieving Admiral Lynde D. McCormick who had been the first Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic. Command structure and responsibilities Wright's command responsibilities included acting as Commander-in-Chief U.S. Atlantic Fleet (CINCLANTFLT), one of the two major fleet commands within the U.S. Navy with responsibility for all naval operations throughout the Atlantic Ocean; Commander-in-Chief U.S. Atlantic Command (CINCLANT), a unified command responsible for U.S. military operation throughout the Atlantic Ocean geographical region; and Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic (SACLANT), one of the two principal military commands for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), responsible for keeping the sea lanes open between the United States and Europe. Fleet modernization Wright inherited a U.S. Atlantic Fleet in transition as the U.S. Navy was going through a modernization period