Arthur C . Davis Arthur Cayley Davis ( 14 March 1893 – 10 February 1965 ) was an admiral of the United States Navy . His career included service in World War II and the Cold War . He was a pioneer of dive bombing . Naval career . Davis was born on 14 March 1893 in Columbia , South Carolina . He attended the University of Nebraska from 1909 to 1911 , before his appointment to the United States Naval Academy in 1911 . He was commissioned an ensign upon graduation in 1915 . After various early assignments , Davis reported to Naval Air Station Pensacola in Pensacola Florida , for flight training . He was designated a naval aviator in 1923 . Duties at the U . S . Navys Bureau of Aeronautics and Bureau of Ordnance soon followed . While there , Davis became a pioneer of dive bombing ; he developed dive bombing techniques and in 1925 , he designed a bombsight for use in dive bombing . By 1934 , Davis , a lieutenant commander , became commander of the air group aboard the aircraft carrier . He was head of the Plans Division of the Bureau of Aeronautics from 1936 to 1939 , then served as the commanding officer of the seaplane tender from 1939 to 1940 . Under his command , " USS Langley " operated in the United States Atlantic Fleet from February to July 1939 . It was then deployed to Manila in the Philippines for service in the United States Asiatic Fleet . World War II . In mid - 1940 , by - then - Captain Davis became the aviation officer on the staff of the Commander - in - Chief , Pacific Fleet , the position he held when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor , Hawaii , on 7 December 1941 . This incident brought the United States into World War II . He continued in this position until 30 June 1942 . For his next tour , he was named as the commanding officer of the aircraft carrier . However , the ship was sunk on 7 June 1942 in the late stages of the Battle of Midway before he could report aboard . As a result , he took command of the aircraft carrier on 30 June 1942 . instead . Davis led " Enterprise " into combat in the Guadalcanal campaign , supported United States Marine Corps amphibious landings on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands and fought in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons on 24 August 1942 . During the battle , " USS Enterprise " suffered more damage than any other American ship involved , when Japanese dive bombers scored three hits and four near misses on her , killing 77 and wounding 91 of her crew and seriously damaging her . After his promotion to rear admiral , Davis received the Navy Cross for his actions aboard " USS Enterprise " on 24 August , the citation for the award read , " By his remarkable seamanship , resourcefulness and his outstanding skill in maneuvering his ship , Rear Admiral Davis met the vigorous Japanese dive - bombing attack coolly and courageously , holding the damage by bomb hits to the " Enterprise " to a minimum and , in turn , inflicting heavy casualties on the attacking enemy planes . " After relinquishing command of " USS Enterprise " on 21 October 1942 and receiving his promotion to rear admiral , Davis served in the Atlantic Fleet , first as Commander , Carrier Replacement Squadron , Atlantic Fleet in 1942 , then as Commander , Fleet Air , Atlantic Fleet , from 1942 to 1943 , and finally as Assistant Chief of Staff , Atlantic Fleet , from 1943 to 1944 . In September 1944 , Admiral Raymond A . Spruance , the Commander of United States Fifth Fleet , reluctantly chose Davis as his chief of staff after Admiral Ernest King , the Chief of Naval Operations , ordered that all commanders with a surface warfare background have a chief of staff with aviation experience and vice versa . Davis won over Spruance with his competence and congeniality and was described as a " lean , rough , aggressive leader " who " moved decisively and intelligently . " Davis was with the Fifth Fleet until July 1945 , and during his tour the fleet operated in the Pacific Ocean against Japanese forces in the Iwo Jima and Okinawa campaigns . He then became the commander of Carrier Division Five . Later career . After leaving Carrier Division Five , Davis was the Deputy U . S . Military Representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization ( NATO ) Military Staff Committee . He then was Director of the Joint Staff for the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 20 September 1949 to 1 November 1951 , before being promoted to vice admiral in 1951 . He served as Deputy United States Representative to the Standing Group , North Atlantic Treaty Organization until 16 August 1953 . On 1 November 1953 , Davis became Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs and the U . S . Navys Director of Foreign Military Affairs , positions he held until his retirement from active duty in April 1955 . He was promoted to the four - star rank of admiral upon retirement . Decorations and awards . Davis received award of the Navy Cross , two awards of the Distinguished Service Medal , and three awards of the Legion of Merit . In addition , " USS Enterprise " was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation for the period 7 December 1941 to 15 November 1942 , which included Daviss time in command . Personal life . Davis was married to Eunice M . Davis ( 1908 - 1974 ) . Davis died on 10 February 1965 . He was buried with his wife at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington , Virginia . Legacy . The U . S . Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names renamed the Warpasgiljo Glacier in Antarctica the Arthur Davis Glacier in honor of Davis .