John T . Hayward John Tucker " Chick " Hayward ( 15 November 1908 – 23 May 1999 ) was a World War II naval aviator . He helped develop one of the two atomic bomb s that was dropped on Japan in the closing days of the war . Later , he was a pioneer in the development of nuclear propulsion , nuclear weapons , guidance systems for ground - and air - launched rockets , and underwater anti - submarine weapons . A former batboy for the New York Yankees , Hayward dropped out of high school and lied about his age to enlist in the United States Navy at age 16 . He was subsequently admitted to the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis , from which he graduated 51st in his class of 1930 . He volunteered for naval aviation . During World War II , he served at the Naval Aircraft Factory in Philadelphia , where he was involved in an effort to improve aircraft instrumentation , notably the compass and altimeter . He attended the University of Pennsylvania ' s Moore School of Electrical Engineering , and studied nuclear physics . In June 1942 , he assumed command of a new patrol bomber squadron , VB - 106 , equipped with PB4Y - 1 Liberator s , which he led in a daring raid on Wake Island , in the Solomon Islands campaign , and in the Southwest Pacific Area . Returning to the United States in 1944 , he was posted was to the Naval Ordnance Test Station at Inyokern , California , where he joined the Manhattan Project , participating in Project Camel , the development of the non - nuclear components of the Fat Man bomb , and in its drop testing . After the war ended , he travelled to Hiroshima and Nagasaki as part of the team investigating the bomb damage , and during Operation Crossroads , he led the effort to photograph the nuclear explosion at the Bikini Atoll . In 1949 , he assumed command of VC - 5 , the first naval nuclear bomber squadron . In March 1949 , he took off from the carrier in the Atlantic in a Lockheed P2V Neptune bomber carrying a dummy Little Boy pumpkin bomb , flew across the United States to make a simulated attack on a test site in California . , and flew back to Patuxent River , where he landed after a total of 23 hours flying . In August 1950 , he was at the controls of the first carrier landing and takeoff of an AJ - 1 Savage heavy attack bomber . From June 1951 to May 1953 , Hayward was head of the Military Applications Division of the Atomic Energy Commission , where he conducted atomic weapons laboratory work at Los Alamos National Laboratory . In June 1953 , he assumed command of the escort carrier , and was involved in the rescue of a baby who was found abandoned in the trash at a U . S . Army depot . In June 1954 , he became the first naval aviator to command the Naval Ordnance Laboratory , where he was involved with the development of the Mark 52 naval mine and the Mark 90 nuclear bomb , a nuclear depth charge . He was Assistant Chief of Naval Operations for Research and Development , and then Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Development . In 1962 he assumed command of a carrier task force which included the nuclear - powered aircraft carrier . He commanded the Antisubmarine Warfare Force , Pacific Fleet , from 1963 to 1966 , and then was president of the Naval War College from 1966 until 1968 . Early life . Hayward was born in New York City on November 15 , 1908 one of eight children of Charles Brian and Rosa Hayward , née Valdetaro . As a youngster , he was a batboy for the New York Yankees . In May 1925 , he dropped out of high school at Loyola School and enlisted in the United States Navy by lying about his age , which at the time he believed to be only 15 , and forging his father ' s signature on the papers . He soon acquired the nickname " Chick " from a bosun who asked " And how in did a little chick like you get in here amongst all these grown men ? " The nickname would remain with him for the rest of his naval career . Hayward did his initial naval training at the Naval Station Newport at Newport , Rhode Island . He was encouraged by the Chaplain , Father John J . Brady , to try for admission to United States Naval Academy at Annapolis . Brady arranged for Hayward to be sent to the Naval Academy Preparatory School in Norfolk , Virginia , to study for the entrance exams . During World War I , some one - hundred presidential appointments to Annapolis had been set aside for enlisted sailors , but few had applied , and fewer still had passed the entrance exams . Of the 119 sailors who sat the exams in 1926 , only 19 passed , one of whom was Hayward . He entered Annapolis in August 1926 , and was commissioned as an ensign on graduation in June 1930 , ranking 51st in his class of 406 . After graduation , Hayward volunteered for naval aviation , and learned to fly in a Consolidated NY seaplane at Naval Air Station Hampton Roads . A tour of sea duty on the cruiser followed , after which he was posted to the Naval Air Station Pensacola to complete his flight training . He received his aviator ' s wings in July 1932 . While there he met a local woman , Leila Marion ( Lili ) Hyer , and the two were married at St John ' s Church in Warrington , Florida on 15 October 1932 . Their marriage would produce five children . Hayward was posted to a scout bombing squadron , VS - 1B , flying Vought SBU Corsair s , on the aircraft carrier on the West Coast , and was soon promoted to the rank of lieutenant ( junior grade ) , but owing to government austerity measures , was not paid as such . In 1935 , the squadron was transferred to the . Coming in for a landing , a fuel line on his aircraft broke , spraying him with fuel and damaging his left eye . After he recovered , and his flight status was restored , he was sent to VP - 2 , which was stationed in the Panama Canal Zone , flying Martin PM patrol aircraft . Following a two - year tour there , he was assigned to the SON Seagull detachment aboard the newly commissioned cruiser , where he was promoted to lieutenant on 30 June 1937 . He then repeated the procedure of commissioning the aircraft detachment of a new cruiser on another ship of the same class , the in 1938 . World War II . Pacific Theater . Hayward was posted to the Naval Aircraft Factory in Philadelphia in June 1940 , where he continued graduate studies at Temple University that he had begun in 1937 , and then attended the University of Pennsylvania ' s Moore School of Electrical Engineering , where he studied nuclear physics . At the Naval Aircraft Factory , he was involved in an effort to improve aircraft instrumentation , notably the compass and altimeter . He was promoted to lieutenant commander in January 1942 . In June 1942 , Hayward assumed command of a new patrol bomber squadron , VB - 106 , equipped with PB4Y - 1 Liberator s . He was promoted to commander in August 1942 . VB - 106 trained in Hawaii , and flew its first combat mission against Wake Island in October 1943 . For this mission , he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross . His citation read : Hayward was awarded a second Distinguished Flying Cross on the recommendation of Captain Arleigh Burke for leading his squadron in the South Pacific Area . His citation read : In March 1944 , VB - 106 was transferred to Nadzab in the Southwest Pacific Area , where it came under the command of the Fifth Air Force . It thus served in three different theaters in the Pacific . Hayward was awarded a third Distinguished Flying Cross : He was also awarded the Legion of Merit with the valor device : Somewhat depleted in both aircraft and aircrews , VB - 106 handed over its three PB4Ys with the least hours on the clock to its relief , VB - 115 , on 27 May 1944 , and returned to the United States . Manhattan Project . Hayward ' s next posting was to the Naval Ordnance Test Station at Inyokern , California . Initially he was involved with test firing rockets from various aircraft , including the Grumman F6F Hellcat and the twin engine Grumman F7F Tigercat . Once his security clearance was complete , he was assigned to the Manhattan Project . He participated in Project Camel , the development of the non - nuclear components of the Fat Man bomb , and in its drop testing . This involved flying the four engine Boeing B - 29 Superfortress . After the war ended , he travelled to Hiroshima and Nagasaki as part of the Manhattan Project team investigating the bomb damage . He was promoted to captain on 10 December 1945 . During Operation Crossroads , he led the effort to photograph the nuclear explosion at the Bikini Atoll . Post war . Nuclear weapons . After a series of clashes with his superior at Inyokern , Captain James B . Sykes , Hayward left to become the Director for Plans and Operations for Armed Forces Special Weapons Project , Sandia National Laboratories on 1 August 1947 . On 1 January 1948 , he was reduced in rank to commander again . The Air Force offered a commission as a brigadier general , and Convair offered a job working on the SM - 65 Atlas missile , but Hayward elected to stay in the navy . He participated in the Operation Sandstone nuclear tests in the Pacific in April 1948 . After World War II , the US Navy sought to acquire a nuclear strike capability , and the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Air , Rear Admiral Arthur W . Radford wanted them to operate from aircraft carriers . There were practical problems with this . Nuclear weapons at that time were bulky and required a large aircraft to carry them . After Operation Crossroads , Radford asked Hayward if the Navy had such an aircraft , and Hayward suggested modifying the Lockheed P2V Neptune for carrier operations using jet - assisted takeoff ( JATO ) rocket boosters . It was an interim solution , as it a could not carry a Fat Man , but only the smaller Little Boy bomb ; it could only be operated by the large " Midway " class aircraft carriers , which still had to be modified for the task ; and initially had no tailhook , so it was unable to land on a carrier , and a mission would have to end with it either landing at a land base or ditching at sea . On 28 April 1948 , two P2Vs were launched from a carrier , the , for the first time . The intention was that each of the three " Midway " - class carriers would have a nuclear attack squadron . The first of these , Composite ( Heavy Attack ) Squadron 5 ( VC - 5 ) was formed at Moffett Field , California , on 9 September 1948 , with Commander Frederick L . " Dick " Ashworth , who had been weaponeer on the Nagasaki raid , as its acting commander . However , Rear Admiral Deak Parsons felt that Ashworth did not have sufficient flight time for the role , so it was decided that Hayward would command VC - 5 . He assumed command on 3 January 1949 , with Ashworth as his executive officer . Hayward intended that Ashworth would take command of the next squadron , VC - 6 , when it was formed . Hayward was promoted to captain again on 19 February 1949 . On 7 March , he took off " Coral Sea " in the Atlantic in a P2V carrying a dummy Little Boy pumpkin bomb , and flew across the United States to make a simulated attack on the Salton Sea test site near El Centro , California . He then flew to Patuxent River , where he landed after a total of 23 hours flying . Hayward had tailhooks fitted to a pair of P2Vs , and made practice landings on a carrier deck painted on the ground at NAS Patuxent River , Maryland , He made some touch and go passes at the , but a carrier landing was considered too dangerous for regular crews to attempt . The P2Vs would be first augmented , and then replaced , by the more capable North American AJ Savage as they became available . These could take off and land on a carrier , carrying a Fat Man . On 21 August 1950 , Hayward was at the controls of the first carrier landing and takeoff of an AJ - 1 Savage heavy attack bomber , on the " Coral Sea " with the Commander of Naval Air Forces Atlantic Fleet ( COMAIRLANT ) , Vice Admiral Felix Stump , in the back seat . However by mid - December VC - 5 still only had six AJ - 1s . From June 1951 to May 1953 , Hayward was head of the Military Applications Division of the Atomic Energy Commission , where he conducted atomic weapons laboratory work at Los Alamos National Laboratory . He also worked on the foundation of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory program in 1952 in close collaboration with Edward Teller . The culmination of this was working on the Ivy Mike nuclear test . " Point Cruz " . In June 1953 , Hayward took command of the escort carrier . He confessed to the crew that he did not know what he was doing , and urged any crewman who felt he was doing something wrong to tell him so at once . At the end of the Korean War , the carrier was deployed at Inchon , where a baby was found abandoned in the trash at a U . S . Army depot . The baby was brought to an orphanage , and Hayward sent " Point Cruz " ' s chaplain in response to a request for assistance . The nun running the orphanage felt the blue - eyed baby would not be safe if he remained in Korea . Hayward is said to have told the chaplain : " You are not to return to this vessel until you have procured that baby . " Hayward is credited with putting his naval career " on the line " by bringing the baby on the ship , which was against regulations , and he subsequently received orders to get the baby off the ship . However , having a baby on board boosted sailors ' morale , and Hayward later said that a leader must " know when to intelligently disregard regulations . " A visa was obtained by intervention of Richard Nixon ' s staffers , and a passport was secured by winning a poker game against the South Korean who issued passports . The baby , adopted by Navy surgeon Hugh Keenan , who was also in port at Inchon , was later named Daniel , and was transferred to a civilian ship in Japan . Daniel Keenan was raised in Seattle and began attending reunions of the crew of the " Point Cruz " in 1993 . The story of Daniel Keenan was made into a television movie , " A Thousand Men and a Baby " , which aired on CBS in 1997 . Later career . Hayward assumed command of the Naval Ordnance Laboratory at White Oak , Maryland in June 1954 . He was the first naval aviator to do so , all the previous commanders having been naval ordnance officers . Under his guidance , the Naval Ordnance Laboratory developed the Mark 52 naval mine , an air - delivered weapon with acoustic , magnetic and pressure sensors . Hayward encountered some resistance with this project , as mine warfare was a neglected field in the Navy . The Naval Ordnance Laboratory also developed the Mark 90 nuclear bomb , a nuclear depth charge , which was tested during Operation Wigwam in May 1955 . From a naval career point of view , Hayward ' s most notable drawback was his lack of time in command of a ship at sea . Admiral Arleigh Burke , now Chief of naval Operations , arranged for Hayward to be given command of the aircraft carrier " Franklin D . Roosevelt " in February 1956 . This would normally be the climax of naval aviator ' s career , but that year he was selected for promotion to rear admiral . His record of 13 , 200 flight hours was the highest ever achieved by a flag officer . On 7 January 1957 , he was assigned to the office of the Assistant Chief of Naval Operations for Plans and Operations . In October , he became Assistant Chief of Naval Operations for Research and Development . The very public failure of Project Vanguard resulted in Hayward being called to appear before a Congressional Committee , where he was grilled by its chairman , Senator Lyndon B . Johnson . The post was upgraded to Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Development in 1959 , and he was promoted to vice admiral . He pushed the development of a number of new weapons systems , including the Lockheed P - 3 Orion and the nuclear - powered aircraft carrier . Between 1959 and 1961 , Defense expenditure on research and development grew from $ 525 million ( roughly equivalent to $ as of 20 ) to $ 4 billion ( roughly equivalent to $ as of 20 ) . In 1962 , President John F . Kennedy offered Hayward four stars and the job of Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency . Hayward turned it down , accepting a demotion to rear admiral on 9 March 1962 to take command of Carrier Division 2 , which included the nuclear - powered " Enterprise " , and . In October 1962 , his ships participated in the Cuban Missile Crisis . In June 1963 , he was restored to the rank of vice admiral , which was backdated to 25 April 1959 , the day he had first been promoted . He commanded the Antisubmarine Warfare Force , Pacific Fleet , from 13 June 1963 to 12 January 1966 , for which he was awarded the Navy Distinguished Service Medal for his " leadership , judgment and foresight in research and development associated with antisubmarine warfare and the training of Antisubmarine Warfare Groups during his tenure of command . Hayward was president of the Naval War College in Newport , Rhode Island from 1966 until 1968 . He strove to transform the Naval War College into the Navy ' s premier postgraduate school , one from which graduation would fit officers for , and mark them out as future flag officers . Heading a captain ' s selection board in May 1967 , he disapproved of two officers with spotless records . " You mean they never argued , never had a difference of opinion ? " he remarked . " What kind of man is that ? " Hayward was awarded a second Navy Distinguished Service Medal for his service as president of Naval War College . He retired in 1968 , but returned to serve to duty as a rear admiral from November 1970 to December 1971 as Commander , 14th Naval District , Commander Fleet Air Hawaii and Commander , Naval Base Pearl Harbor . His responsibilities included " the planning , training and execution of highly successful recoveries of Apollo spacecraft in the Mid - Pacific " , for which he was awarded a third Legion of Merit . Later life . After retiring from the Navy , Hayward worked for General Dynamics as a vice president for international programs until 1973 , and then as a consultant until 1979 . He then worked with the Draper Laboratory and the Hertz Foundation . He became an American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Fellow in 1998 , and was inducted into the Naval Aviation Hall of Honor in 2004 . Hayward died of cancer on 23 May 1999 in Atlantic Beach , Florida , and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery , along with his wife Leila , who had died the year before . He was survived by his son and four daughters . His papers are in the Naval History & Heritage Command at the Washington Navy Yard .