Joseph J. Dantone

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Joseph J. Dantone is a retired United States Navy rear admiral who helped create the National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA) from the old Defense Mapping Agency (DMA). Born August 6, 1942, in Baltimore, Maryland, he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1964 with a degree in naval engineering and became a naval aviator in 1965. He earned master’s degrees in aeronautical engineering and management at the Naval Postgraduate School and completed nuclear power training in 1981–82.

Dantone flew fighter jets on several carriers, including the F-4 Phantom with VF-84 on the USS Independence and the F-14 Tomcat with VF-161 on the USS Enterprise, serving in the Vietnam era. He took part in the evacuation of Saigon in 1975. He later commanded VF-14 (1979–1980) and served as executive officer of the Enterprise (1983–85). He then commanded the Wichita (1985–87) and later the Dwight D. Eisenhower (1988–1990), which deployed to the Red Sea during the Gulf War. He was promoted to rear admiral and commanded Carrier Group Three from 1992 to 1994.

As a flag officer, Dantone led the NIMA transition team, consolidating imagery and mapping resources from eight agencies into a single DoD agency to improve support for national and military customers. He served as acting director of NIMA from October 1996 to March 1998, and earlier was the last director of the DMA from May to September 1996. He was inducted into the 2016 Geospatial Intelligence Hall of Fame and flew more than 150 combat missions in his career.