Jack Joseph Catton (1920 - 1990)

Born 5 Feb 1920 in Berkeley, Alameda, California, United States

Died 5 Dec 1990 at age 70 in Riverside, Riverside, California, United States

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Biography

Jack Catton was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States).

Jack Catton was awarded the Legion of Merit.

Jack Catton was awarded the Air Medal.

Jack Catton was awarded the Purple Heart.

General Jack Catton served in the United States Army Air Forces in World War II
Service started: 1941
Unit(s):
Service ended: 1974

Jack Catton is buried in United States Air Force Academy Cemetery.

Jack Joseph Catton was a United States Air Force four-star general and was commander of the Air Force Logistics Command with headquarters at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and of the Military Airlift Command.

He had a long and distinguished career in the USAAC, USAAF, and USAF before retiring Aug 1, 1974. He flew and/or qualified in very many types of aircraft, including the B-17, B-29, B-52, C-5, C-9, C-141, KC-97, K-135, F-4, HH-53 plus more.

US Air Force General. He served in that capacity as the Commander-in-Chief of Military Airlift Command (now Air Mobility Command) headquartered at Scott Air Force base, Illinois and of the Air Force Logistics Command (now Air Force Materiel Command) headquartered at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. He was born in Berkley, California and graduated from Fairfax High School in Los Angeles, California. He attended Santa Monica College in Santa Monica, California and :Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.

In 1940 he entered the US Army Air Corps as a flying cadet and received his pilot training at Santa Maria, California, and Randolph and Kelly Fields (now part of Joint Base san Antonio) in Texas. In February 1941 he was commissioned a second lieutenant. In the early stages of the US involvement in World War II, he served as an instructor pilot at Barksdale Field (now Barksdale Air Force Base), Louisiana, and Hendricks Field (now Sebring Regional Airport), Florida, and as a squadron commander at Lockbourne Field (now Rickenbacker International Airport), Ohio.

In 1944 he flew the first B-29 Superfortress bomber aircraft across the pacific Ocean to the Mariana Islands, where he served under the 21st Bomber Command and flew combat missions against Japan. From 1946 to 1947, as a lieutenant colonel, he participated in the first two atomic weapons tests in the Pacific while commanding the 65th Bombardment Squadron. In June 1948 he was assigned as chief of the Policy Branch, Directorate of Plans, at Strategic Air Command (SAC) headquarters, Andrews Air Force Base (now Joint Base Andrews), Maryland. He moved with the command to Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, as chief of the Requirements Branch, Directorate of Plans.

After recovering from a bout with polio, he went to March Air Force Base (now March Air Reserve Base), California, in 1950 and served as director of operations for the 22d Bombardment Wing and later for the 12th Air Division until November 1951. He then performed a three-month temporary duty assignment in Japan, flying combat missions against North Korea. Afterwards, he was assigned to Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington to serve as deputy commander of the 92d Bombardment Wing. As commander, he later led the wing from Fairchild to the Pacific island of Guam in the first test of B-36 Peacemaker bomber aircraft capabilities in sustained oversea operations. He was then assigned to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, to command the 43d Bombardment Wing for a year. In June 1956 he returned to Headquarters SAC for a tour of duty in the Directorate of Operations. In November 1958 he became the chief of staff for the Eighth Air Force at Westover Air Force Base (now Westover Air Reserve Base), Massachusetts, followed a year later as the commander of the 817th Air Division at Pease Air Force Base (now Pease Air National Guard Base), New Hampshire. At that time he was the youngest brigadier general in the Air Force. Two years later he took command of the 822d Air Division, Turner Air Force Base, Georgia (now closed), where he served one year prior to becoming commander of the 823d Air Division at Homestead Air Force Base (now Homestead Air Reserve Base), Florida. In August 1963 he was transferred to Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota and became the commander of the 821st Strategic Aerospace Division. In February 1964 he was assigned to Headquarters US Air Force, Washington DC as the Director of Operational Requirements, Deputy Chief of Staff for Programs and Requirements (later reorganized as Operational Requirements and Development Plans, Deputy Chief of Staff for Research and Development). During this period, he served as the Department of Defense representative and chairman of the National Committee for Clear Air Turbulence. In July 1966 he was transferred to the Office of the Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff for Programs and Resources as the Director of Aerospace Programs, with additional duties as Chairman of the Air Staff Board. In August 1967 he became the Deputy Chief of Staff for Programs and Resources.

The following year he took command of 15th Air Force at March and on August 1, 1969, he was promoted to the rank of general and became the Commander-in-Chief of Military Airlift Command (now Air Mobility Command) at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. In September 1972 he became the Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force Logistics Command (now Air Force Materiel Command) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, and retired from that position in 1974, with 34 years of active military service in the US Army Air Corps and the US Air Force.

Among his military decorations and awards include the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal with oak leaf cluster, the Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster, the Distinguished Flying Cross with oak leaf cluster, the Purple Heart, the Air Medal with three oak leaf clusters, and the Army Commendation Medal. He was a command pilot and qualified in the C-5 Galaxy, C-141 Starlifter, C-9 Nightingale, all bombers from the B-17 Flying Fortress through the B-52 Stratofortress, KC-97 Stratotanker and KC-135 Stratotanker, the F-4 Phantom II fighter bomber and the HH-53 helicopter. Additionally, he had limited experience in many of the century series fighters, and has logged nearly 14,000 flying hours during his military career. After his military retirement, he worked for the Lockheed Corporation and retired as senior vice president in 1984. He died of heart failure in Riverside, California at the age of 70. He is the father of Retired Air Force Major General Jack J. Catton, Jr.

• Biography by: William Bjornstad

Sources

• "California Birth Index, 1905-1995," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V25F-2JW : 27 November 2014), John J Catton, 05 Feb 1920; citing Alameda, California, United States, Department of Health Services, Vital Statistics Department, Sacramento.

• "United States, GenealogyBank Obituaries, 1980-2014," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QK7L-FBF4 : accessed 15 January 2019), General Jack J Catton, Colorado, United States, 07 Dec 1990; from "Recent Newspaper Obituaries (1977 - Today)," database, GenealogyBank.com (http://www.genealogybank.com : 2014); citing Rocky Mountain News, born-digital

• "United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VM9T-LZX : 11 January 2021), Jack J Catton, 04 Dec 1990; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: ...

• Together We Served - Gen Jack Joseph Catton: https://airforce.togetherweserved.com/usaf/servlet/tws.webapp.WebApp?cmd=ShadowBoxProfile&type=Person&ID=174389

• US Air Force Biographies: https://www.af.mil/About-Us/Biographies/Display/Article/107523/general-jack-j-catton

• Jack J Catton, Air Force General, 70,-New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/1990/12/08/obituaries/jack-j-catton-air-force-general-70.html

• Jack J Catton Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_J._Catton

• Find A Grave: Memorial #19081873 United States Air Force Academy Cemetery, Colorado Springs, El Paso County, Colorado, USA