James Willis

Vice Admiral Sir Guido James Willis (18 October 1923 – 15 June 2003), was an officer in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) who rose to the rank of vice admiral. He joined the RAN in 1937, saw active service during World War II and the Korean War, and was Chief of Naval Staff (CNS) from 1979 to 1982 before retiring.

Early career James Willis was born at Learmonth, Victoria, in 1923 and later brought up in Mount Gambier, South Australia. His father, Dr J. R. L. Willis, had served in the British Royal Navy and the RAN during World War I. Willis attended Wesley College in Melbourne and entered the Royal Australian Naval College in 1937. His younger brother Allan entered the college in 1940.

Willis completed his officer training in 1940 and was posted to the heavy cruiser , joining the ship on Boxing Day. He remained with Canberra until December 1941 when he joined the British destroyer which was engaged in escorting convoys traveling from Egypt to Malta. Willis transferred to the battleship in early 1942 and later undertook a course in the United Kingdom. Willis returned to Australia in 1949 on board the aircraft carrier . He was married to Dr Helen Turner later in the year and joined as flotilla navigation officer. Willis served on board the ship during its six-month-long deployment to Korean waters during the Korean War from late 1950 to early 1951 before being sent to the United Kingdom for further specialist training. At the end of this course he was promoted to lieutenant commander and was a senior instructor with the Royal Navy's navigation training school for two years. He later attended the Royal Navy's staff college at Greenwich before returning to Australia with . In 1982, he arranged for the purchase of the British aircraft carrier , but was later to be disappointed when the sale was canceled after the Falklands War.

After retirement Willis and his wife divided their time between Canberra and Tuross Head, New South Wales. He became the first chairman of the Anglican Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn and later moved to Adelaide in 1998.