Admiral Sir Richard George Alison Fitch, KCB (2 June 1929 – 15 February 1994) was a senior Royal Navy officer who served as Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel from 1986 to 1988.
Sir Richard Fitch | |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Dick |
| Born | 2 June 1929 Blackheath, London |
| Died | 15 February 1994 (aged 64) |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service | Royal Navy |
| Years of service | 1942–1988 |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Commands | Flag Officer Third Flotilla HMS Hermes HMS Apollo HMS Berwick |
| Battles / wars | Second World War |
| Awards | Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath |
Naval career
editEducated at Royal Naval College Dartmouth, Fitch joined the Royal Navy as a cadet in 1942.[1]
Fitch was made Commanding Officer of the frigate HMS Berwick in 1966 and then joined the staff of the Flag Officer Second-in-Command for the Far East Fleet in 1967.[1] He was made commander of the frigate HMS Apollo in 1973 and then became Naval Assistant to the First Sea Lord in 1974.[1]
Fitch was made captain of the aircraft carrier HMS Hermes in 1976 and Director of Naval Warfare at the Ministry of Defence in 1978.[2] He went on to be Naval Secretary in 1980 and Flag Officer Third Flotilla in 1983.[2] He was made Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel as well as President of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich in 1986,[2] and retired from the navy in November 1988.[3]
In retirement Fitch became a Lloyd's name.[1] Facing large underwriting losses, he committed suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning in his car.[4]
Family
editIn 1969 Fitch married Kathleen Marie-Louise Igert; they went on to have one son.[2]
References
edit- ^ a b c d Obituary: Admiral Sir Richard Fitch The Independent, 22 February 1994
- ^ a b c d Debrett's People of Today 1994
- ^ "No. 51550". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 December 1988. p. 13679.
- ^ "Ex-Sea Lord facing ruin at Lloyd's killed himself: Son blames market for death of 'name' who became depressed by large losses". The Independent. 22 March 1994. Retrieved 19 January 2020.