William F. Moran (admiral)

On April 11, 2019, Moran was nominated for appointment as Chief of Naval Operations. He was confirmed for the position by the U.S. Senate on May 23, 2019. He was due to assume the position on August 1, 2019. However, on July 8, 2019, he announced that he would instead decline the post and retire based on "an open investigation into the nature of some of my personal email correspondence over the past couple of years and for continuing to maintain a professional relationship with a former staff officer, now retired, who had while in uniform had been investigated and held accountable over allegations of inappropriate behavior." The Outgoing Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral John Richardson, praised Moran's 38 years of Navy service, calling him "a close friend and colleague" and "superb Naval Officer and leader."

Moran was the 39th Vice Chief of Naval Operations from May 31, 2016, to June 10, 2019.

Moran assumed duties as the Navy's 57th Chief of Naval Personnel on August 2, 2013. Serving concurrently as the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations, he was responsible for the planning and programming of all manpower, personnel, training and education resources for the United States Navy. He managed an annual operating budget of $29 billion and led more than 26,000 employees engaged in the recruiting, personnel management, training and development of Navy personnel. His responsibilities included overseeing Navy Recruiting Command, Navy Personnel Command, and Naval Education and Training Command.

William Francis Moran was born and raised in New York. He graduated from Valley Central High School in 1977, and received a Bachelor of Science degree from the United States Naval Academy in 1981 and a master's degree from the National War College in 2006.

William Francis Moran (born 1958) is a retired four-star officer with over thirty-eight years of service and experience. He began his career as a Naval Aviator and rose rapidly to hold command leadership positions at every level of the Navy.

The front-end of Moran's career was spent in the cockpit on anti-submarine warfare (ASW) patrols above the Atlantic and Mediterranean as well as in numerous instructor pilot assignments. After a tour in personnel management, he operated in the Pacific and Middle East theaters conducting ASW and supporting ground forces during OEF and OIF. As a flag officer he served in a variety of positions including Director of Air Warfare and Chief of Naval Personnel prior to becoming the 39th Vice Chief of Naval Operations (VCNO).