William Toti

William Joseph "Bill" Toti (born January 15, 1957) is an American author, photographer, military technology corporate executive, and former naval officer.

Toti was the final captain of the Los Angeles-class submarine USS Indianapolis (SSN-697).

He also served as commodore of Submarine Squadron 3 in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

Toti was born in Youngstown, Ohio and grew up in Campbell, Ohio, graduating from Memorial High School in 1974.

He later entered the United States Naval Academy, graduating in 1979 with a degree in physics.

Subsequently, he entered the US Navy's nuclear power program and after completing his nuclear power training and submarine school, Toti joined the submarine force in 1980.

Toti attended the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California from 1984 to 1986, graduating with the first group of Space Systems Engineers in 1986.

He was nominated by the US Navy for Astronaut Mission Specialist in 1987, but failed NASA vision screening and therefore did not enter astronaut training.

Toti took command of the submarine USS Indianapolis (SSN-697) in January 1997.

He deployed with his ship from April to October 1997, during which time the Indianapolis was awarded the Battle Efficiency E and a Navy Unit Commendation, and Toti was awarded the first of his seven Legion of Merit awards for achievement during that deployment.

Toti was then called on to decommission Indianapolis only 18 years into its 30-year life, the ship being a victim of the post-Cold War peace dividend.

In 1999, Toti became the Special Assistant to the Vice Chief of Naval Operations and was stationed at the Pentagon.

In response, Toti authored the article on the McVay affair, titled The Sinking of the Indy and the Responsibility of Command published in the US Naval Institute Proceedings in October 1999.

Later Toti helped Admiral Donald Pilling prepare his testimony in front of a US Senate committee hearing on the McVay court-martial.

McVay was exonerated in 2000.

Toti's role in the McVay affair was described in the books In Harms Way by Doug Stanton and Indianapolis by Lynn Vincent and Sara Vladic.

He is known for his role in the exoneration of Captain Charles B. McVay III of the World War II cruiser USS Indianapolis (CA-35), as well as for his actions during the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on the Pentagon.

He authored the 2022 book, From CO to CEO: A Practical Guide for Transitioning from Military to Industry Leadership.

In October 2001, he received the Legion of Merit from Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Vern Clark for his actions during the attack.

Toti is a lifetime member of the National Eagle Scouts Association, and in 2002 was awarded the BSA Honor Medal by the National Council for his actions during the 9/11 attack.

As the United States prepared for its invasion of Iraq, in 2003 Toti organized and led a military exercise that utilized submarines and special forces in a counter-terrorism operation.

called "Giant Shadow."

During that event, Toti was featured in the CBS News program "60 Minutes" in 2003 with correspondent Scott Pelley.

Toti served as commodore of Submarine Squadron 3 in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii from 2003 to 2004.

At the time of Toti's command, Submarine Squadron 3 was the largest submarine squadron in the US Navy, with six Los Angeles-class nuclear fast attack submarines assigned, to include USS Honolulu (SSN-718), USS Louisville (SSN-724), USS Olympia (SSN-717), USS Columbia (SSN-771), USS Chicago (SSN-721), and USS Key West (SSN-722).

Toti's final active duty assignment was to establish and serve as the first commanding officer of Fleet Antisubmarine Warfare (ASW) Command, Norfolk, Virginia.

During this tour, in 2005 Toti authored a new maritime doctrine titled "Full Spectrum ASW."

Widely regarded as a sea change in the method by which naval forces countered submarines, his treatise on the subject also received wide attention internationally.

During this assignment, Toti was also called upon by the Navy to defend the use of active sonar for antisubmarine training, arguing for the practice during controversial public hearings near populations affected by the beaching of marine mammals.

While serving as commanding officer of the submarine USS Indianapolis (SSN-697), Toti was recruited by the survivors of the World War II cruiser USS Indianapolis (CA-35) to assist in their effort to clear the name of Captain Charles B. McVay III, who was captain of the cruiser at the time it was sunk by Imperial Japanese Submarine I-58, and who had been court-martialed following their ship's sinking.

As a result, Toti was named an Honorary Survivor by the USS Indianapolis Survivors' Organization in 2005.

His narrative from that day, titled "Antoinette," was incorporated into the introduction of the 2006 book "Operation Homecoming," edited by Andrew Carroll and published by Random House.

A video recording of his narrative was created for the history project titled "Voices of 9.11."

Toti's role in helping to clear McVay's name was covered in the 2016 documentary film USS Indianapolis: the Legacy Project, directed by Sara Vladic.

The documentary won several awards at GI Film Festivals in both Washington, DC, and San Diego, California.

He was featured in the 2016 PBS documentary, 9/11: Inside the Pentagon, in the 2020 History Channel documentary "9/11: The Pentagon," and in episode three of the 2021 National Geographic 6-episode docuseries "9/11: One Day in America."

In September 2017, Toti was also featured in a PBS live broadcast titled USS Indianapolis, Live from the Deep, and in 2019 he was featured in the PBS long-form documentary USS Indianapolis: Final Chapter.

Toti was on duty in the Pentagon at the time of the September 11 attack by terrorists who took control of American Airlines Flight 77.

Some of his activity during the rescue effort was captured in ABC News video footage of the event.

Toti was awarded his third Legion of Merit for his actions following the attack.