James A . Winnefeld , Jr . James Alexander " Sandy " Winnefeld , Jr . ( born April 24 , 1956 ) is a United States Navy four - star admiral who currently serves as the ninth Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff . He previously served as the fourth Commander , U . S . Northern Command ( USNORTHCOM ) and the 21st Commander , North American Aerospace Defense Command ( NORAD ) from May 19 , 2010 to August 3 , 2011 . Prior to that , Winnefeld served as Director for Strategic Plans and Policy , The Joint Staff which he concurrently served as the Senior Member , U . S . Delegation to the U . N . Military Staff Committee . His other operational commands include serving as the Commander , U . S . Sixth Fleet and Commander , Allied Joint Command Lisbon . As the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , Winnefeld is the second highest - ranking officer in the United States Armed Forces , second only to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff . He assumed his current assignment on August 4 , 2011 . Biography . Winnefeld graduated from Georgia Tech in 1978 with high honors in Aerospace Engineering and received his commission via the Navy Reserve Officer Training Corps program . While at Georgia Tech , Winnefield was a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity . After designation as a naval aviator , he served with two fighter squadrons and as an instructor at the Navy Fighter Weapons School ( TOPGUN ) . Winnefeld went on to graduate with the highest distinction from the U . S . Naval War College off - campus program . He is a recipient of the Admiral William J . Crowe Award as Joint Staff Action Officer of the Year and the Vice Admiral William W . Behrens , Jr . award as the honor graduate of his Navy nuclear power school class . His command tours include Fighter Squadron 211 ( VF - 211 ) , and as the 17th commanding officer of the . He led " Enterprise " through her 18th deployment , which included combat operations in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom immediately after the terrorist acts of September 11 , 2001 . As commander , Carrier Strike Group 2 / " Theodore Roosevelt " Carrier Strike Group , he led Task Forces 50 , 152 and 58 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and maritime interception operations in the Persian Gulf . He most recently served concurrently as Commander , U . S . Sixth Fleet ; Commander , Allied Joint Command Lisbon ; Commander , Striking and Support Forces NATO ; Deputy Commander , U . S . Naval Forces Europe ; and Joint Forces Maritime Component Commander , Europe . His shore tours include service as an action officer in the Joint Staff Operations Directorate , as senior aide to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and as executive assistant to the Vice Chief of Naval Operations . As a flag officer he served ashore as Director , Warfare Programs and Transformational Concepts , United States Fleet Forces Command and as Director , Joint Innovation and Experimentation at United States Joint Forces Command . September 11 attacks . Winnefeld was the commanding officer of the " USS Enterprise " during the September 11 attacks . The " USS Enterprise " was headed to Cape Town , South Africa , for one last port call before returning home after a six - month deployment near the Persian Gulf . The crew was watching television at sea on September 11 and watched the hijacked United Airlines Flight 175 airliner strike the south tower of the World Trade Center . Acting without authorization from the National Command Authority , then - Captain Winnefeld gave the order to put the ship ' s rudder over ( 180° degree turn ) to take station in the Arabian Sea . The carrier ' s aircraft were within range of Afghanistan the next morning . For over three weeks , aircraft from " USS Enterprise " flew nearly 700 missions and dropped large amounts of ordnance over Afghanistan . The Chief of Naval Operations , Admiral Vern Clark praised Winnefeld and credited him for taking initiative as well as for " USS Enterprise " ' s crew readiness . He ' s also a recipient of the William J . Crowe , William W . Behrens , Jr . awards and the 2012 recipient of the Naval War College Distinguished Graduate Leadership Award .