John D. Price

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John D. Price
Vice Adm. John D. Price (cropped).jpg
Birth nameJohn Dale Price
Born(1892-05-18)May 18, 1892
Augusta, Arkansas, U.S.
DiedDecember 18, 1957(1957-12-18) (aged 65)
San Diego, California, U.S.
Service/branchUnited States Navy
Years of service1916-1954
RankAdmiral
Battles/warsWorld War I
World War II
AwardsNavy Cross
Legion of Merit (2)
Distinguished Flying Cross

John Dale Price (May 18, 1892 – December 18, 1957) was an admiral in the United States Navy who, early in his career, set many records as a naval aviator.

Early life and education[]

Price graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1916[1] along with his friend Spig Wead. In 1920, he was designated as a naval aviator.[1]

Career[]

Lieutenants Wead and Price set five world records for Class C seaplanes with a Curtiss CS-2 biplane on June 22–23, 1924 - distance (963.123 miles, 1,544.753 km), duration (13 hours, 23 minutes, 15 seconds), speed over 500 km (73.41 mph, 117.74 km/h), speed over 1,000 km (74.27 mph, 119.12 km/h) and speed over 1,500 km (74.17 mph, 118.96 km/h) - and again on July 11–12 - distance (994.19 miles, 1599.99 km) and duration (14 hours, 53 minutes, 44 seconds).[2] Lieutenant Price is also credited with making the first planned night landing on a US aircraft carrier, on the USS Langley (CV-1) in a TS fighter biplane on April 8, 1925 (Lieutenant "stalled while practicing night approaches" and landed by accident on February 5).[3]

He served in World War II, and at some point commanded Fleet Air Wing Two as a rear admiral.[4] After the war, he served as commander of the Naval Air Forces in the Pacific from 1947 until 1948 and from 1948 until 1950. He was a "tombstone admiral", meaning he was promoted to four star rank upon retirement.

He died in 1957 at the Naval Hospital in San Diego.[1] He was survived by his wife Miriam.[1]

He was played by Ken Curtis in the 1957 film The Wings of Eagles, which starred John Wayne as Spig Wead. Price served as a technical adviser on the film.[5] He also served as a technical advisor for the movie Mister Roberts.[6]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d "Ex-Aviator John Price Dies at 65". The Victoria Advocate. December 20, 1957.
  2. ^ "United States Naval Aviation 1910-1995 Part 3: The Twenties 1920-1929" (PDF). Naval History & Heritage Command. Retrieved May 20, 2013. p. 13
  3. ^ "First Planned Night Carrier Landings". Naval History Blog, United States Naval Institute. April 8, 2010. Retrieved May 20, 2013.
  4. ^ "Navy Rocket Pioneers" (PDF). Naval History & Heritage Command. Retrieved May 20, 2013. p. 7
  5. ^ "Notes: The Wings of Eagles (1957)". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 20, 2013.
  6. ^ Mister Roberts at IMDb

External links[]

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