Adm. Joseph Metcalf led invasion of Grenada in '83

WASHINGTON — Joseph Metcalf III, the Navy vice admiral who led the U.S. invasion of the Caribbean nation of Grenada in 1983, died March 2 at his Washington, D.C., home after a series of strokes. He was 79 and also had a progressive neurological disorder.

Adm. Metcalf was given the assignment to lead the invasion only 39 hours before it was to take place Oct. 25, 1983. Six days earlier, a Marxist faction had seized control of Grenada's government and executed Prime Minister Maurice Bishop and 15 supporters.

The United States and several Caribbean nations feared Grenada could take a sudden turn toward violent revolution, fueled by several hundred Cuban advisers. There was also concern for about 650 Americans who attended medical school in Grenada.

Adm. Metcalf, commander of the Atlantic 2nd Fleet, led an invasion force of about 6,000 troops from all four branches of the military.

Supplemented by about 300 troops from several Caribbean countries, U.S. forces took control of the 133-square-mile island nation within three days and captured the leader of the rebellion, Deputy Prime Minister Bernard Coard, who remains in prison. In sporadic fighting, 19 Americans and at least 45 Grenadans were killed. No American medical students were harmed.

"Given the short time that we had to plan the operation," Adm. Metcalf said in 1986, "I'm satisfied."

At first, Adm. Metcalf enforced a strict media blackout, which ignited an intense battle over freedom of the press. Threatening U.S. jets turned back several reporters in a chartered fishing boat.

Other reporters reached the island but were prevented from sending dispatches — or communicating with their offices or families — for two days. Only after intervention from the White House and the Pentagon were the correspondents allowed to file reports.

Adm. Metcalf said orders to restrict the media came from above. But Margaret Belknap, an Army lieutenant colonel and faculty member at the U.S. Military Academy, wrote in 2002 in Parameters, the U.S. Army War College Quarterly, that "President Reagan left the decision for media access to the military, and ultimately it rested with ... Metcalf."

The Grenada operation exposed communication and coordination problems among the military branches, prompting streamlined planning of multiforce operations.

In 1985, Adm. Metcalf landed in more hot water when it was discovered he and his staff had tried to bring back 24 AK-47 rifles from Grenada. Customs agents seized the weapons, and Adm. Metcalf received an official "caution."

At the same time, seven Marines and soldiers were court-martialed and sentenced to jail for smuggling weapons, prompting criticism of what some saw as lenient treatment of Adm. Metcalf.

Adm. Metcalf was born in Holyoke, Mass., and joined the Navy in 1946 as an enlisted man. A year later, he enrolled in the U.S. Naval Academy, graduating in 1951.

His decorations included four awards of the Distinguished Service Medal, the Defense Superior Service Medal, three awards of the Legion of Merit and two Bronze Stars.

Survivors include his wife of 56 years, Ruth Metcalf; three children; and a brother.