 In November 1965 , he had his third accident when apparent engine failure in his T @-@ 2 Buckeye trainer jet over the Eastern Shore of Virginia led to his ejecting safely before his plane crashed . While at Meridian , McCain requested a combat assignment . In October 1966 , he was slated for upcoming Vietnam War duty , and so reported to the VA @-@ 44 Replacement Air Group squadron at Naval Air Station Cecil Field in Florida for training on the A @-@ 4 Skyhawk , a single @-@ seat jet attack aircraft . There McCain was seen as a good pilot , albeit one who tended to " push the envelope " in his flying . Promoted to lieutenant commander in January 1967 , McCain joined the aircraft carrier USS Forrestal by May 1967 , flying Skyhawks with the VA @-@ 46 " Clansmen " squadron . Forrestal conducted training exercises in the Atlantic early in the year , then set sail for the Pacific in June . By this time , Jack McCain had risen in the ranks , making rear admiral in 1958 and vice admiral in 1963 ; in May 1967 , he was promoted to four @-@ star admiral , and became Commander @-@ in @-@ Chief , U.S. Naval Forces , Europe , stationed in London . 
