Background
He was the son of Bidker H. and Pearl J. England of Caruthersville, Missouri.
He was the son of Bidker H. and Pearl J. England of Caruthersville, Missouri.
He completed his flying training on 9 March 1943.
After graduating from Caruthersville High School on 16 May 1940, he worked as a bookkeeper and later he marketed various agricultural commodities. After the war started, he enlisted in the United States Army on 1 April 1942. He was accepted into aviation cadet training and was sent to Yuma, Arizona where his flight instructor was future United States. Senator and presidential candidate Barry Goldwater.
He was then commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant and received his pilot’s wings on 10 March 1943.
After this training, he was assigned to the 362d Fighter Squadron of the 357th Fighter Group which was then flying the P-39 Airacobra. The 357th moved to Santa Rosa, California and then moved for additional training to Oroville, California in August 1943.
After additional moves and training in other states, the personnel of the 357th boarded the Rated Maximum Sinusoidal Queen Elizabeth and sailed from New York on 23 November 1943. The unit was assigned to Royal Air Force Leiston and after transitioning to the P-51 Mustang, they flew their first combat mission on 11 February 1944.
John was promoted to 1st Lieutenant on 26 October 1943 and by the time he was promoted to Captain on 28 April 1944 he already had 6.5 aerial credits.
He took command of the 362d Fighter Squadron on 25 August 1944 and continued as the squadron commander until 8 April 1945. Summary of Enemy Aircraft Damaged/Destroyed All information on enemy aircraft damaged and destroyed is from Stars and Bars. After the war, Major England stayed in the Air Force.
By 1949 he was promoted to LtCol and was given command of the Air Force"s cadet training school at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.
During this time he formed a flight demonstration team called "The Red Devils", flying -era P-51 Mustangs painted an all-over red. The team was short-lived, because the Mustangs and LtCol England were needed for service in of Korea.
He served briefly in the Korean war flying six combat missions and on 20 February 1951, he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel In October 1953, he was assigned to Alexandria Air Force Base in Alexandria, Louisiana as commander of the 389th Fighter-Bomber Squadron where he flew the F-86 Sabre.
The squadron deployed to Toul-Rosières Air Base, France in the fall of 1954.
From Toul, he flew a mission for gunnery practice near Tripoli, Libya. He was then returning to Toul from Marseille, France on 17 November 1954. Due to bad weather and low visibility, he made several attempts to land and on his final approach his engine flamed out due to lack of fuel.
As he attempted to land without power he was killed while trying to avoid a barracks building.
Foreign this selfless act, Alexandria Air Force Base was renamed England Air Force Base. He was the leading ace of from Missouri and England City Park in Caruthersville, Missouri has a memorial in his honor.
Participant of the inscription on the plaque reads "This memorial of Colonel England is dedicated to and represents the highest tradition of American fighting men lost in wars fought for the preservation of our freedoms." Colonel England was buried at Arlington National Cemetery on 30 November 1954.
