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Following graduation from the Naval Academy in 1910, Pownall served briefly in the Mississippi (BB-23), Missouri (BB-11), Ammen (DD-35), and Reid (DD-21). During World War I he commanded the Roe (DD-24) and Vedette (SP-163), and after the war, the John D. Ford (DD-228). After flight training, he was designated a naval aviator in 1927. He then served as navigator in the Saratoga (CV-3), air officer in the Lexington (CV-2), and had duty on the staffs of Commander in Chief Battle Fleet and Commander Aircraft Squadrons Battle Fleet. He was executive officer of the Ranger (CV-4), and skipper of the Enterprise (CV-6) from 1938-41. During World War II he served as Commander Patrol Plane Replacement Squadrons, Patrol Wings, Pacific Fleet; Commander Fleet Air, West Coast; Commander Carrier Division Three; Commander Air Force Pacific Fleet; and Chief of Naval Air Training Command. His final tours, before retirement in 1949, were as Commander Marianas and naval governor of Guam.
Other Comments:
Awards and Citations
Navy Cross Awarded for actions during World War I
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Lieutenant Commander Charles Alan Pownall, United States Navy, for distinguished service in the line of his profession as Commanding Officer of the U.S.S. VEDETTE, engaged in the important exacting and hazardous duty of transporting and escorting troops and supplies through waters infested with enemy submarines and mines during World War I.
Action Date: World War I Service: Navy Rank: Lieutenant Commander Company: Commanding Officer Division: U.S.S. Vedette
Central Pacific Campaign (1941-43)/Battle of Tarawa
From Month/Year
November / 1943
To Month/Year
November / 1943
Description The Battle of Tarawa (US code name Operation Galvanic) was a battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II, fought from November 20 to November 23, 1943. It took place at the Tarawa Atoll in the Gilbert Islands, located in what is now the nation of Kiribati. Nearly 6,400 Japanese, Koreans, and Americans died in the fighting, mostly on and around the small island of Betio.
The Battle of Tarawa was the first American offensive in the critical central Pacific region. It was also the first time in the war that the United States faced serious Japanese opposition to an amphibious landing. Previous landings met little or no initial resistance. but this time the 4,500 Japanese defenders were well-supplied and well-prepared, and they fought almost to the last man, exacting a heavy toll on the United States Marine Corps. The U.S. had suffered similar casualties in other campaigns, for example over the six months of the Guadalcanal Campaign, but in this case the losses were incurred within the space of 76 hours.
My Participation in This Battle or Operation
From Month/Year
November / 1943
To Month/Year
November / 1943
Last Updated: Mar 16, 2020
Personal Memories
Memories Rear Admiral Charles Pownall would deploy six of these ships as the cutting edge of his Task Force 50 at Tarawa. Escorted by new high-speed battleships and logistic support ships, Pownall's carrier task forces could challenge the Japanese Combined Fleet for command of the seas. More than any other naval factor, the newly created Task Force 50 (soon to become Vice Admiral Marc Mitscher's Task Force 58) would make possible Spruance's stirring victories in the Gilberts, Marshalls, and Marianas.
