Richard Fitch

Admiral Sir Richard George Alison Fitch, KCB (2 June 1929 – 15 February 1994) was a senior Royal Navy officer who served as Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel from 1986 to 1988.

Sir Richard Fitch
Nickname(s)	Dick
Born	2 June 1929 Blackheath, London
Died	15 February 1994 (aged 64)
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Royal Navy
Years of service	1942–1988
Rank	Admiral
Commands held	Flag Officer Third Flotilla HMS Hermes HMS Apollo HMS Berwick
Battles/wars	Second World War
Awards	Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath

Naval career

Educated at Royal Naval College Dartmouth, Fitch joined the Royal Navy as a cadet in 1942.[1]

Fitch was made Commanding Officer of the frigate HMS Berwick in 1966 and then joined the staff of the Flag Officer Second-in-Command for the Far East Fleet in 1967.[1] He was made commander of the frigate HMS Apollo in 1973 and then became Naval Assistant to the First Sea Lord in 1974.[1]

Fitch was made captain of the aircraft carrier HMS Hermes in 1976 and Director of Naval Warfare at the Ministry of Defence in 1978.[2] He went on to be Naval Secretary in 1980 and Flag Officer Third Flotilla in 1983.[2] He was made Second Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Personnel as well as President of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich in 1986, and retired in 1988.[2]

In retirement Fitch became a Lloyd's name.[1] Facing large underwriting losses, he committed suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning in his car.[3]

Family

In 1969 Fitch married Kathleen Marie-Louise Igert; they went on to have one son.[2]

References

1. Obituary: Admiral Sir Richard Fitch The Independent, 22 February 1994
2. Debrett's People of Today 1994
3. "Ex-Sea Lord facing ruin at Lloyd's killed himself: Son blames market for death of 'name' who became depressed by large losses". The Independent. 22 March 1994. Retrieved 19 January 2020.