Wikipedia:Today's featured article/September 13, 2013

Otto Becher (1908–77) was a senior officer in the Royal Australian Navy. After graduating from the Royal Australian Naval College in 1926, he was posted to a series of staff and training positions prior to specialising in gunnery. He assisted in the extraction of Allied troops from the Namsos region of Norway during the Second World War and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. Following service in the Mediterranean theatre, he returned to Australia as officer-in-charge of the gunnery school at HMAS Cerberus for two years. He was given command of HMAS Quickmatch in 1944 and earned a Bar to his Distinguished Service Cross for operations against Japanese forces in the Pacific. After the war he was posted to the Navy Office and later to the aircraft carrier HMAS Sydney; in 1951 he was given command of the destroyer HMAS Warramunga. Warramunga formed part of Australia's contribution to the United Nations forces engaged in the Korean War; he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his role. Promoted to rear admiral in 1959, he served as Flag Officer Commanding Australian Fleet and then as Flag Officer-in-Charge East Australia Area before retiring in 1966.

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