[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 181 (Monday, December 14, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Page S8633]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              REMEMBERING LIEUTENANT COLONEL JOHN J. NOLAN

 Mrs. FISCHER. Mr. President, I rise to honor a Nebraskan who 
was recently interred at Arlington National Cemetery. Lt. Col. John J. 
Nolan of Lincoln, NE, was a U.S. Air Force pilot who deserves our 
respect and gratitude. After the bombing at Pearl Harbor, he gave up a 
football scholarship at Temple University to enlist in the Army Air 
Corps in 1943.
  During World War II, John was a B-25 aircraft commander with the 
heralded Air Apaches, 345th Bombardment Group, assigned to the Fifth 
Air Force operating in the Southwest Pacific.
  In this capacity, he flew low-level strafing missions in specially 
configured B-25s with eight .50-caliber machine guns that were 
controlled by pilots. He flew in the Black Sunday raid on Hollandia, 
New Guinea, on April 16, 1944. This raid became the worst operational 
loss ever suffered by the Fifth Air Force in a single day.
  Following World War II, the Air Force realized more pilots had been 
lost on instruments than in actual combat. In response, the Instrument 
Pilot Instruction School was created. John was one of the initial cadre 
of pilots tasked with providing standardized instrument procedures, 
techniques, and training methods. These pilots were also required to 
test and evaluate flight instruments in adverse weather conditions. 
During this period, he became the B-25 high-time pilot for the entire 
U.S. Air Force.
  John also wrote a substantial part of the instrument flying 
guidelines, known as Air Force Manual 51-37. Many pilots owe their 
lives to this manual. As a matter of fact, when his two sons went 
through pilot training in 1967 and 1973, respectively, his instructions 
were still in the manual.
  John transitioned to F-86s as a part of the Air Force's newly created 
All Weather Interceptors. He also served in Japan during the Korean 
war.
  In the 1960s, when commercial aviation was converting to jet-powered 
aircraft and entering into military airspace at high altitudes, John 
was assigned to Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base, known as Air Defense 
Command. He became the Air Force liaison to the FAA Central Region, and 
he was tasked with developing and coordinating procedures to ensure 
safe arrival and departures within this shared airspace. In this 
capacity, John was also responsible for maintaining military readiness 
and operational capabilities.
  Upon his retirement in October 1963, John was chosen to serve as the 
Midwest recruiter for the Air Force Academy.
  John dedicated his entire life to his beloved U.S. Air Force. Not 
only did he serve honorably, John was also an integral participant in 
so many of the milestones that are now a part of Air Force history.
  John never lost his love of flight. He continued to fly well into his 
late eighties in his restored Fairchild PT 19/26, which is the same 
aircraft he initially learned to fly in as a cadet in the Army Air 
Corps.
  Lt. Col. John Nolan's entire life was for God and country. He married 
Marie Di Giambattista on January 6, 1944, before he was assigned 
overseas. Together, they raised four children. Marie sacrificed much, 
as so many of our military families experience today, moving 23 times 
in John's 20-year career. They were married 71 years. Only 27 days 
after Marie passed, John died this past July 3, 2015, at the age of 94.
  We owe a debt of gratitude to John Nolan and his family. He led an 
extraordinary life at a time when our country needed people like him 
the most. Through all of this, he remained humble. We will never forget 
his sacrifices and patriotism.

                          ____________________