John Leroy Armstrong
MilitaryAssigned to 79FS, 20FG, 8AF USAAF. Credited 1 x Fw190 destroyed. Failed to Return (FTR) strafing mission to Bad Kreuznach, left formation in P-51D 'Guardian Angel' 44-13791 trailing white smoke and baled out. 28-Aug-44. Pilot 1st Lt John L Armstrong POW. MACR 8303.
Awards: AM (5 OLC), DFC, POW, WWII Victory, EAME.
Post War: Remained in USAF. At the Dayton Air Show 3-Sep-54, being held at the James M Cox Municipal Airport, he flew his North American Aviation F-86H-1-NA Sabre, 52-1998, to a World Speed Record over a 500 kilometer course, averaging 649.461 miles per hour. He died two days later when his plane broke apart in flight while attempting to set another record.
Connections
See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.
Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: P-38 Lightning
- Unit: 20th Fighter Group 495th Fighter Training Group 496th Fighter Training Group 552nd Fighter Squadron 554th Fighter Training Squadron 79th Fighter Squadron
- Aircraft Type: P-51 Mustang
- Nicknames: Okie Bloke IV Guardian Angel
- Unit: 20th Fighter Group 79th Fighter Squadron
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Kingscliffe, Apethorpe
- Site type: Prisoner of war camp
- Known as: Stalag Luft I, Barth, Germany
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Born |
Orange County, CA, USA | 19 July 1922 | Son of Milton Williams and Olive M [Meyer] Armstrong. |
Other Crashed |
North Killingholme, Immingham DN40, UK | 13 March 1944 | Crashed Belly Landing out of fuel North Willingholme Cat 3 damage, pilot Lt John L Armstrong, 13-Mar-44. 554FTS 496FTG 8AF. |
Other Assigned |
King's Cliffe, Peterborough PE8, UK | 26 March 1944 - 28 August 1944 | Assigned to 79FS, 20FG, 8AF USAAF. |
Other Promotion |
King's Cliffe, Peterborough PE8, UK | 26 June 1944 | Promoted to 1st Lieutenant. |
Other Baled Out POW |
55758 Bruchweiler, Germany | 28 August 1944 | Failed to Return (FTR) strafing mission to Bad Kreuznach, left formation trailing white smoke and baled out. 28-Aug-44. Pilot 1st Lt John L Armstrong POW. MACR 8303. |
Other Prisoner of War (POW) |
Barth, Germany | 28 August 1944 | Prisoner of War (POW). Held at Stalag Luft I. |
Other Crashed |
Victorville, CA, USA | 28 February 1946 | Ground Loop Victorville AAF CA Cat 3 damage, pilot Lt John L Armstrong, 28-Feb-46, AT-6D 42-84338 4196AAFBU |
Other Crashed |
Clinton County Port Authority, 1113 Airport Rd, Wilmington, OH 45177, USA | 4 April 1949 | Landing Accident Clinton Country Airport, OH Cat 3 damage, pilot Lt John L Armstrong, 4-Apr-49. TF-80C 48-919 27AW |
Other Crashed |
Wright-Patterson AFB, OH, USA | 21 May 1953 | Weather related Accident 55 miles NE of Wright-Patterson AFB, OH Cat 2 damage, pilot Lt John L Armstrong, 21-May-53. 530521 EF-86D 50-477 Ftr Mx Section Flt Ops Branch Wright-Patterson AFB, OH ARDC |
Other Crashed |
Wright-Patterson AFB, OH, USA | 25 November 1953 | Explosion 20 miles SW of Wright-Patterson AFB, OH Cat 3 damage, pilot Lt John L Armstrong, 25-Nov-53. EF-89C 51-5761 Ftr Maint Sec Flt Ops Branch |
Died |
Tipp City, OH, USA | 5 September 1954 | Died when his plane F-86H-1-NA Sabre, 52-1998 broke apart in attempt at record flight. Crashed 1 mile East Tipp City, Ohio. |
Los Angeles, California | |||
Buried |
Fullerton, CA, USA | Loma Vista Memorial Park Fullerton Orange County California, USA. |
Revisions
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 8303 / MACR 8303, King's Cliffe Memorial Edition / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database / Ted Damick, VIII Fighter Command pilots list