John E. Leach World War II Collection

Collection — Folder: 1

Identifier: 1992-04-06

Contents of the Collection

The John E. Leach World War II Collection contains a logbook and photographs related to Leach's World War II service in the U.S. Navy.

The Aviators Flight Log Book notes Leach's hours logged from flight training to his patrols to various islands in the Pacific theater of World War II. The logbook also contains small photos of aircraft, cards for Leach's naval training certifications, flight equipment record cards, and a requisition form to replace stolen equipment.

The collection also includes fourteen photographs. Three photographs are formal portrait of Leach; two are group portraits. The remaining images are of various United States Naval aircraft as well as an aircraft carrier, presumed to be the escort carrier USS Nehenta Bay based on information in collection materials. The photographs are assumed to have been taken between 1943-1945, some during Leach's flight training at various Naval Air Stations and others possibly during combat missions in the Pacific.

Dates

Creation: Circa 1940-1946

Language of Materials

All materials are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research and is accessible in the Dahlberg Research Center by appointment. For more information contact us.

Conditions Governing Use

The Museum of Flight (TMOF) Archives is the owner of the physical materials in the archives and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from TMOF archives before any publication use. TMOF does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners. Consult repository for more details.

Biographical Note: John "Jack" E. Leach

John "Jack" Edward Leach was a U.S. Naval pilot during World War II.

Leach was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey on September 5, 1923. He was 18 when the United States entered World War II. He served with the United States Navy Reserve as a fighter pilot. Leach flew in F4F Wildcat, F6FP Hellcat, and F4U4 Corsair aircraft. His logbook indicates that Leach trained at the Naval Air Station in Jacksonville, Florida. Between June 1944 and January 1945, Leach flew several combat patrols in the Pacific Theater in the region between Guam and Pitylu Island, north of Papua New Guinea. Included in the logbook is a small certificate of his admittance to the "Ancient Order of the Deep" when he crossed the equator onboard the escort carrier USS Nehenta Bay on August 24, 1944. In April, 1945, Leach completed the Night Vision Training Program at the Naval Air Station in Norfolk, Virginia.

After the war, Leach earned his MBA at Harvard University and worked for various industries in southeast Asia, England, and Illinois before moving to Tacoma, Washington with his wife in 1978. Jack Leach passed away on April 9, 2015.

Biography derived from collection materials and the following source: "Obituary of John Edward Leach." Edwards Memorial. https://edwardsmemorial.com/tribute/details/15022/John-Leach/obituary.html. Accessed November 14, 2019.