Shortly after the surprise Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Chester W. Nimitz (1885—1966) was selected to be the new commander-in-chief of the US Pacific Fleet. The vast operational area he was assigned included many of the island chains US forces would need to capture as they pushed the Japanese back across the Pacific.

Nimitz proved an extraordinarily effective leader and strategist. He selected competent and experienced subordinates as his tactical commanders, and developed a mostly cooperative relationship with General Douglas MacArthur, his US Army counterpart in the Pacific, eschewing the sort of competitive rivalry that often encumbered Allied armies in Europe. He insisted on engaging the Japanese on ground of his choosing, bypassing and cutting off enemy strongholds where the Allies had little to gain and much to lose.

Nimitz arrived in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945, aboard his flagship, the battleship USS Missouri, where he served as the official signee for the United States during the Japanese surrender. After the war, Nimitz was promoted one last time to chief of Naval operations, a position he held for two years before accepting later postings with the Secretary of the Navy and the United Nations. He passed away in 1966 at the age of 80.