11 October 1987(1987-10-11) (aged 79) Canberra, Australian Capital Territory
Allegiance
Australia
Service/branch
Royal Australian Navy
Years of service
1922–1968
Rank
Vice Admiral
Commands held
Chief of Naval Staff (1965–68) HM Australian Fleet (1962–64) HMAS Australia (1952–54) Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (1951–52) HMAS Warramunga (1950) HMAS Shoalhaven (1949–50)
Battles/wars
Second World War
Battle of the Mediterranean
Arctic convoys
Italian Campaign
Operation Husky
Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation Vietnam War
Awards
Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companion of the Order of the Bath George Medal Commander of the Order of Orange-Nassau (Netherlands)
Relations
Brigadier General Sir Walter McNicoll (father) Major General Ronald McNicoll (brother)
Other work
Australian Ambassador to Turkey (1968–73)
Vice Admiral Sir Alan Wedel Ramsay McNicoll, KBE, CB, GM (3 April 1908 – 11 October 1987) was a senior officer in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and a diplomat. Born in Melbourne, he entered the Royal Australian Naval College at the age of thirteen and graduated in 1926. Following training and staff appointments in Australia and the United Kingdom, he was attached to the Royal Navy at the outbreak of the Second World War. As torpedo officer of the 1st Submarine Flotilla in the Mediterranean theatre, McNicoll was decorated with the George Medal in 1941 for disarming enemy ordnance. He served aboard HMS King George V from 1942, sailing in support of several Arctic convoys and taking part in the Allied invasion of Sicily. McNicoll was posted for staff duties with the Admiralty from September 1943 and was involved in the planning of the Normandy landings. He returned to Australia in October 1944.
McNicoll was made executive officer of HMAS Hobart in September 1945. Advanced to captain in 1949, he successively commanded HMAS Shoalhaven and HMAS Warramunga before being transferred to the Navy Office in July 1950. In 1952, McNicoll chaired the planning committee for the British nuclear tests on the Montebello Islands, and was appointed commanding officer of HMAS Australia. He commanded the ship for two years before it was sold off for scrap, at which point he returned to London to attend the Imperial Defence College in 1955. He occupied staff positions in London and Canberra before being posted to the Naval Board as Chief of Personnel in 1960. This was followed by a term as Flag Officer Commanding HM Australian Fleet.
McNicoll's career culminated with his promotion to vice admiral and appointment as First Naval Member and Chief of Naval Staff (CNS) in February 1965. As CNS, McNicoll had to cope with significant morale and recruitment issues occasioned by the February 1964 collision between HMAS Melbourne and Voyager and, furthermore, oversaw an extensive modernisation of the Australian fleet. In 1966, he presided over the RAN contribution to the Vietnam War, and it was during his tenure that the Australian White Ensign was created. McNicoll retired from the RAN in 1968 and was appointed as the inaugural Australian Ambassador to Turkey. He served in the diplomatic post for five years, then retired to Canberra. McNicoll died in 1987 at the age of 79.
Vice Admiral Sir Alan Wedel Ramsay McNicoll, KBE, CB, GM (3 April 1908 – 11 October 1987) was a senior officer in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and a...
Territory of New Guinea Mount McNicoll, British Columbia Port McNicoll, Ontario This page lists people with the surname Mcnicoll. If an internal link intending...
Ramsay McNicoll (1906–1996); Sir Alan Wedel Ramsay McNicoll (1908–1987); Colin Wedel Ramsay McNicoll (1909–1921); Frederick Oscar Ramsay McNicoll (1910–1989);...
Collins Sir Roy Dowling Sir Henry Burrell Sir Hastings Harrington Sir AlanMcNicoll Sir Victor Smith Sir Richard Peek Sir David Stevenson Chiefs of the...
September 1906 in Melbourne, Victoria, McNicoll was the son of Sir Walter McNicoll and elder brother of Sir AlanMcNicoll. Growing up in Goulburn, he completed...
time at Watson was cut short when, on 28 July, he relieved Captain AlanMcNicoll as commander of the destroyer HMAS Warramunga, which had been selected...
Burrell David Harries Henry Burrell Galfry Gatacre Hastings Harrington AlanMcNicoll Otto Becher Thomas Morrison Victor Smith Richard Peek Gordon Crabb David...
chaired by the Australian Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff, Captain AlanMcNicoll. Its other members were Colonel John Wilton from the Australian Army...
First Naval Member of the Australian Commonwealth Naval Board, Sir AlanMcNicoll,[clarification needed] proposed two designs to the board members: one...
and Schuster, 1978. Keegan, John, ed. The Rand McNally Encyclopedia of World War II. New York: Rand McNally & Company, 1977. Tucker, Spencer C., ed. Who's...
Succeeded by General Sir Frank Hassett Preceded by Vice Admiral Sir AlanMcNicoll Chief of Naval Staff 1968–1970 Succeeded by Vice Admiral Sir Richard...
Burrell David Harries Henry Burrell Galfry Gatacre Hastings Harrington AlanMcNicoll Otto Becher Thomas Morrison Victor Smith Richard Peek Gordon Crabb David...
Air Staff Peter Gration – Chief of the Australian Defence Force Sir AlanMcNicoll – Chief of the Royal Australian Navy Sir John Monash – first Australian...
Burrell David Harries Henry Burrell Galfry Gatacre Hastings Harrington AlanMcNicoll Otto Becher Thomas Morrison Victor Smith Richard Peek Gordon Crabb David...
Neville McNamara 1981 Honours List [485] AlanMcNicoll 1966 Honours List [486] Walter McNicoll 1937 Administrator of New Guinea [487] William McPherson...
General Ronald McNicoll was the son of Brigadier General Sir Walter McNicoll and the elder brother of Vice Admiral Sir AlanMcNicoll. Brigadier General...
Collins Sir Roy Dowling Sir Henry Burrell Sir Hastings Harrington Sir AlanMcNicoll Sir Victor Smith Sir Richard Peek Sir David Stevenson Chiefs of the...
Royal Australian Navy. Retrieved 22 June 2023. "Vice Admiral Sir Alan Wedel Ramsay McNicoll". RAN biographies. Royal Australian Navy. Retrieved 22 June 2023...
Scottish politician, Minister of Pensions and National Insurance. AlanMcNicoll, 79, Australian senior officer in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and...
Collins Sir Roy Dowling Sir Henry Burrell Sir Hastings Harrington Sir AlanMcNicoll Sir Victor Smith Sir Richard Peek Sir David Stevenson Chiefs of the...
Collins Sir Roy Dowling Sir Henry Burrell Sir Hastings Harrington Sir AlanMcNicoll Sir Victor Smith Sir Richard Peek Sir David Stevenson Chiefs of the...
Collins Sir Roy Dowling Sir Henry Burrell Sir Hastings Harrington Sir AlanMcNicoll Sir Victor Smith Sir Richard Peek Sir David Stevenson Chiefs of the...
Burrell David Harries Henry Burrell Galfry Gatacre Hastings Harrington AlanMcNicoll Otto Becher Thomas Morrison Victor Smith Richard Peek Gordon Crabb David...
fellow chiefs of staff Lieutenant General Henry Wells and Air Marshal John McCauley, Prime Minister Robert Menzies, and senior government members in approving...
Collins Sir Roy Dowling Sir Henry Burrell Sir Hastings Harrington Sir AlanMcNicoll Sir Victor Smith Sir Richard Peek Sir David Stevenson Chiefs of the...
Burrell David Harries Henry Burrell Galfry Gatacre Hastings Harrington AlanMcNicoll Otto Becher Thomas Morrison Victor Smith Richard Peek Gordon Crabb David...
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