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I am now a pirate.

I am a member of the crew of the USS KIDD, DDG 100, named after Rear Admiral Isaac C. Kidd.

The story goes that when Midshipman Kidd was at the Naval Academy classmates called him “the captain” after Scottish Pirate William Kidd, commonly known as Captain Kidd. Colleagues continued to call him Captain Kidd as he rose through the ranks, even though he was promoted to Rear Admiral in 1940. He was assigned to Battleship Group 1 and his flagship was the USS Arizona. When Japanese planes attacked Pearl Harbor, RADM Kidd immediately reported to the bridge of the Arizona to direct defense. He died when the bridge received a direct hit from a Japanese bomb. 

He was one of ten sailors who were posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. His citation follows:

“For conspicuous devotion to duty, extraordinary courage, and complete disregard of his own life, during the attack on the Fleet in Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii, by Japanese Forces on 7 December 1941. Rear Adm. Kidd immediately went to the bridge and as Commander Battleship Division ONE, courageously discharged his duties as senior officer present afloat until the USS Arizona, his flagship, blew up from magazine explosions and a direct bomb hit on the bridge, which resulted in the loss of his life.”

When a destroyer was Christened with his name (the first of three destroyers to be named after him), his wife, Inez, requested that the Jolly Roger (the pirate’s skull and crossbones flag) be flown in memory of him and his nickname. The navy granted that request and to this day it is the only ship that flag has been flown on. 

That is why we are called pirates and why the ship’s patch proudly displays the Jolly Roger.

The Navy takes great pride in its customs and traditions. I am guessing that some Big Navy people may regret allowing one of its warships to fly the pirate flag, but it is really a reminder of the officer who ran to danger to defend his ship and his sailors on December 7, 1941. This is a window into who I will be serving for the next few weeks.

By the way, that first destroyer named after RADM Kidd was also the first ship to officially have a female crew member. Anne Randle was the first member of the WAVES (Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service) to be assigned to the Office of Shipbuilding in New York City. She was on the USS KIDD, DD 661) when it was delivered for service in 1943.