In a bureaucratic tango worthy of a political migraine, Admiral Daryl Lane Caudle has finally secured Senate confirmation as the 34th—or is it 35th?—Chief of Naval Operations (CNO).
You see, Admiral Caudle is the 35th Chief of Naval Operations of the United States Navy. The confusion arises because Admiral Lisa Franchetti was the 33rd CNO (November 2023 to February 2025), and Admiral James Kilby served as acting CNO after her removal, before Caudle’s confirmation. Kilby, as acting CNO, does not get an official number. Therefore, Caudle is officially recognized as the 35th CNO. A bit of Navy trivia for you there.
Caudle’s nomination formally landed in the Senate on June 17–18, 2025, when President Donald Trump tapped Caudle for the job, with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announcing the pick to the Senate a day later.
But hold on a second—Alaska Senator Dan Sullivan threw a wrench in the works, placing a procedural hold on final confirmation—not due to anything Caudle said or did, but in protest that the Pentagon has not agreed to reopen the long‑shuttered Adak Naval Air Station in his state. Though Caudle sailed through the Armed Services Committee vote, Sullivan’s blockade had delayed the full Senate floor vote until yesterday, when Sullivan dropped his objection, allowing the Senate to proceed and approve Caudle’s confirmation just before the August recess.
Undersea Background, Topside Vision
Admiral Daryl Lane Caudle didn’t rise to the top of the Navy by playing it safe or shuffling papers at the Pentagon. Born in 1963 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Caudle took a straight path to the heart of America’s undersea warfare machine. After graduating magna cum laude in chemical engineering from North Carolina State University in 1985, he headed to Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island, earning his commission and setting off on what would become a four-decade-long knife fight with inertia, inefficiency, and any foreign powerds dumb enough to threaten U.S. interests beneath the waves.
His early sea tours read like a greatest hits list of Cold War-era submarines: USS George Washington Carver, Stonewall Jackson, Sand Lance, and Montpelier. Not content to sit in the shadows, Caudle eventually took command of three nuclear-powered subs—Jefferson City, Topeka, and Helena. He later led Submarine Squadron 3, proving himself not only a tactician but a leader who could keep his crews sharp, quiet, and ready to strike.
When he wasn’t patrolling the briny deep, Caudle took on key shore assignments that showcased his range. He trained future nuclear officers, ran operations in the Pacific, and even took a detour into diplomacy as deputy chief for security cooperation in Pakistan. At every stop, the man delivered results. He served as deputy commander of the U.S. 6th Fleet, oversaw operations for Naval Forces Europe-Africa, and took the helm at Submarine Group Eight, directing live combat ops. This wasn’t some deskbound admiral riding his ribbons—Caudle was in the thick of it, from battle planning in Europe to strategic planning in D.C.
By 2019, he was in charge of the entire Atlantic submarine force—both for the U.S. Navy and NATO. Two years later, in December 2021, he was handed command of U.S. Fleet Forces, the Navy’s engine room for combat readiness. He was now responsible for ensuring America’s ships, subs, and sailors were locked, loaded, and fully trained. At the same time, he wore the hat for Naval Forces Northern Command and U.S. Strategic Command, showing up in nearly every room where serious decisions got made.
His educational résumé isn’t anything to sneeze at, either. In addition to that engineering degree, Caudle holds a master’s in physics from the Naval Postgraduate School, a master’s in engineering management from Old Dominion University, and a doctorate in organizational leadership from the University of Phoenix. This is a guy who’s studied how systems work—then commanded some of the most complex ones on the planet.
In June 2025, President Trump nominated Caudle to be the next Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), the Navy’s top uniformed officer. He was slated to succeed Admiral Lisa Franchetti, who had previously broken barriers as the first woman to hold the role before being relieved in a Pentagon shake-up. While Caudle’s nomination breezed through the Armed Services Committee, it hit a snag on the Senate floor thanks to a political hold tied to an entirely unrelated spat over reopening a mothballed air base in Alaska. Washington gamesmanship at its finest.
The hold eventually lifted, and in late July 2025, Caudle was confirmed as the 35th Chief of Naval Operations. It’s a role that demands both battlefield credibility and bureaucratic cunning—he’ll serve as the Navy’s top advisor to the Secretary of Defense and the President while also managing everything from shipbuilding priorities to personnel policies across a globally deployed force.
In short, Caudle brings warfighting chops, strategic savvy, and the kind of deep operational knowledge you don’t get from PowerPoint slides or glad-handing think tankers. He’s a submariner at heart, a commander by trade, and now the top dog in a Navy that’s hungry for clarity, grit, and direction. The job’s his now—let’s see how deep he takes it.
What the Chief Naval Officer Actually Does
Under Title 10 Section 8033, the Chief Naval Officer (Chief of Naval Operations) advises the Secretary of the Navy, transmits plans, implements them once approved, and supervises organizations as directed—also serves on the Joint Chiefs of Staff as the Navy’s top uniformed advisor. In short: strategic navigator; steward of manpower, modernization, operations, and readiness across the globe.
What He Would Be Replacing—and Why That Matters
Caudle is poised to replace Admiral James “Kim” Kilby, who has been acting CNO since Lisa Franchetti, the first woman to serve in the post, was abruptly fired in February 2025 during a sweeping Pentagon purge by the Trump administration. Franchetti’s removal left the Navy rudderless; Kilby held the wheel for five months. Caudle now stands to give the service a consistent, confirmed command voice again.
Why the Navy Needs Admiral Caudle
Caudle is regarded as the “honey‑badger” admiral: fearless, no-nonsense, relentless in exposing systemic failures—especially in shipbuilding. He’s demanded accountability of the industrial base delivering delayed vessels and overpriced programs. At his Senate hearing, he framed the Navy’s challenge bluntly: diminished fleet size, costly delays, and the rapid rise of Chinese naval power. Sailors, he said, are America’s true edge—but they need ships, weapons, and modernization to fight effectively.
What He Says He Might Do
During his Senate testimony, Caudle promised to:
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Review whether to retire USS Boise (SSN‑764) after nearly a decade dockside, she has been plagued by maintenance issues.
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Address the chronic backlog of ship maintenance by borrowing lessons from commercial cruise lines—embracing efficient turnarounds, flexible dock schedules, and empowered crews to lift readiness toward an 80 % readiness goal by 2027.
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Execute a full‑spectrum readiness transformation—modernizing ships, investing in technology, scaling sailor training and readiness, and building alliances across the industrial base and international partners—especially to meet AUKUS submarine commitments for Australia (2.3 Virginia‑class subs/year), given current U.S. output is only ~1.3 per year.
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Maintain enlistment standards despite looser policies—arguing expanded access does not dilute quality and emphasizing accountability and standards remain central to his leadership philosophy.
Closing Fire
Caudle’s confirmation caps off a long drought—more than five months without a Senate‑confirmed CNO.
He emerges as the figure who seeks to drag the Navy out of bureaucratic malaise, rebuild its industrial sinews, and give a submarine‑rooted pragmatism to a service under existential strain.
With world powers circling in contested seas, Caudle vows to ensure America’s maritime dominance remains unchallenged.