Ken Doolan

Kenneth Allan Doolan
Born	(1939-01-15) 15 January 1939 Sydney, New South Wales
Allegiance	Australia
Service/branch	Royal Australian Navy
Years of service	1953–1993
Rank	Rear Admiral
Commands held	Maritime Commander Australia (1990–91) Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (1989–90) HMAS Brisbane (1984–85) HMAS Tobruk (1980–81)
Battles/wars	Vietnam War Gulf War
Awards	Officer of the Order of Australia^[1]
Other work	President of the Returned and Services League of Australia Chairman of the Australian War Memorial Council

Rear Admiral Kenneth Allan "Ken" Doolan AO (born 15 January 1939) is an Australian naval officer, author, and is currently National President of the Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL).^[2] He is a retired rear admiral in the Royal Australian Navy, his most senior commands being Maritime Commander Australia and operational commander of all Australian combatant forces deployed to the Gulf War.

Early life

Doolan was born in Sydney, New South Wales, and received his primary education in Brisbane, Queensland.

Naval career

Doolan joined the Royal Australian Navy as a 13-year-old cadet midshipman in January 1953, attending the Royal Australian Naval College. He graduated in 1956, undertook sea training in the frigate HMAS Swan in 1957 and in December 1958 graduated from the Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, Devon.

Significant postings held during his 41-year naval career included:

aide-de-camp to Governor General Viscount De L’Isle, 1964–1965
Military Secretary to Governor General Lord Casey, 1965
Direction Officer destroyer HMAS Vampire during the Indonesian Confrontation, 1966
Navigating Officer, guided missile destroyer HMAS Perth during the Vietnam War, 1970–1971
Canadian Forces Command and Staff College, 1980, including award of a Master Mariner’s Certificate
commissioning Commanding Officer, amphibious heavy lift ship HMAS Tobruk, 1981
Commanding Officer, guided missile destroyer HMAS Brisbane, 1984–1985
Naval Attaché, Washington DC, United States of America, 1987–1989
Deputy Chief of Naval Staff, 1989–1990
Maritime Commander Australia, 1990–1991, including being appointed Operational Commander of all Australian combatant forces deployed to the Gulf War
Assistant Chief of the Defence Force (Development), 1991 – 1993 (retired)

Second career

After leaving the Australian Defence Force, Doolan has been:

Commissioner, Inquiry into the East Coast Armaments Complex, 1994–1996
Member, Defence Force Remuneration Tribunal, 1996–1999
National Secretary of the Order of Australia Association and Company Secretary of that Association’s Foundation, 2002–2005
Member, National Defence Committee of the Returned and Services League, 2002 – 2009
Established a book publishing company with his wife – Grinkle Press, 2006
President,^[3] Australian Institute of Navigation, 2007 –
National President, Returned and Services League of Australia, September 2009 –

He first came to public notice as President of the RSL in late September 2009 when he made statements in support of Breeanna Till, the pregnant widow of an Australian serviceman Sergeant Brett Till who was killed in the War in Afghanistan (ADF Operation Slipper) in early 2009.

Family

Doolan is married to Elaine. They live in rural New South Wales near the national capital, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory.

Publications

Maritime Power in the 20th Century – The Australian Experience Chapter 13, Allen & Unwin, 1998
A commanding presence: the life of G.H. Barker bookseller, naturalist and ornithologist, Ginninderra Press, 2002^[4]
We Were Cadet Midshipmen – RANC Entrants 50 Years On (contributor & publisher), Grinkle Press, 2006
HMAS Tobruk: warship for every crisis, Grinkle Press, 2007^[5]
Steel Cat: the story of HMAS Brisbane: Vietnam and Gulf War veteran, Grinkle Press, 2009^[6]

References

↑ DOOLAN, Kenneth Allan, AO, It's an Honour, 1991-01-26, accessed 2009-09-28
↑ War widow 'not penniless and abandoned', Brisbane Times, 2009-09-28
↑ Office Bearers, Australian Institute of Navigation, accessed 2009-09-28
↑ A commanding presence : the life of G.H. Barker bookseller, naturalist and ornithologist, biography of George Herbert Baker (1880–1965) (Doolan's maternal grandfather), National Library of Australia
↑ HMAS Tobruk : warship for every crisis, National Library of Australia
↑ Steel Cat: the story of HMAS Brisbane: Vietnam and Gulf War veteran, National Library of Australia

External links

Biography – RSL

Military offices
Preceded by Rear Admiral Ian MacDougall	Maritime Commander Australia 1990–1991	Succeeded by Rear Admiral Robert Walls
Preceded by Rear Admiral Peter Sinclair	Deputy Chief of Naval Staff 1989–1990	Succeeded by Rear Admiral Ian MacDougall
Non-profit organization positions
Preceded by General Peter Cosgrove	Chairman of the Australian War Memorial Council 2012–2015	Succeeded by Kerry Stokes

Fleet Commanders of the Royal Australian Navy

Rear Admiral Commanding HM Australian Fleet	Sir George Patey Sir William Pakenham Arthur Leveson Sir Lionel Halsey John Dumaresq Albert Addison Thomas Wardle

Rear Admiral Commanding HM Australian Squadron	George Hyde Edward Evans Leonard Holbrook Robin Dalglish Wilbraham Ford Richard Lane-Poole Wilfred Custance Wilfrid Patterson John Crace Victor Crutchley John Collins Charles Nichols Harold Farncomb John Collins Harold Farncomb

Flag Officer Commanding HM Australian Fleet	John Eccles John Eaton Roy Dowling Henry Burrell David Harries Henry Burrell Galfrey Gatacre Hastings Harrington Alan McNicoll Otto Becher Thomas Morrison Victor Smith Richard Peek Gordon Crabb David Stevenson William Dovers David Stevenson William Dovers Anthony Synnot David Wells Geoffrey Gladstone Neil McDonald James Willis David Leach Peter Doyle John Stevens Michael Hudson Geoffrey Woolrych Ian Knox Peter Sinclair

Maritime Commander Australia	Peter Sinclair Ian MacDougall Ken Doolan Robert Walls Donald Chalmers Chris Oxenbould Chris Ritchie John Lord Geoffrey Smith Raydon Gates Rowan Moffitt Davyd Thomas

Commander Australian Fleet	Davyd Thomas Nigel Coates Steve Gilmore Tim Barrett Stuart Mayer

RSL National Presidents

Lieutenant Colonel William Bolton (1916–1919)
Sir Gilbert Dyett (1919–1946)
Sir Eric Millhouse (1946–1950)
Sir George Holland (1950–1960)
Sir Arthur Lee (1960–1974)
Sir William Hall (1974–1978)
Sir William Keys (1978–1988)
Brigadier Alf Garland (1988–1993)
Major General Digger James (1993–1997)
Major General Peter Phillips (1997–2003)
Major General Bill Crews (2003–2009)
Rear Admiral Ken Doolan (2009-2016)
Rob White (2016)

Authority control	WorldCat Identities VIAF: 73245812

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