30 November 1957 – Capt Benny Lacombe is killed when he unsuccessfully attempts to bail out of Lockheed U-2A, 56-6704, Article 371, 13 miles SE of Laughlin AFB. Ejection seats had not yet been fitted to U-2s at this point. The history of the U-2 program is fraught with fatalities and crashes. “CIA pilots Wilburn S.
JD says “Proudly, my first flight in the Texas Air National Guard was a check ride with the great Les Leavoy. As a young Fighter Pilot, I could not have had a better Mentor.”
JD is the co-owner of a consulting company, Garza-English & Associates, and is currently consulting for the United States Air Force where he is evaluating, standardizing, and replacing outdated Information Systems.
He spent seven years enlisted service in the United States Marine Corps and then transferred to the United States Air Force where he graduated as a distinguished graduate from Officer Candidate School and served his remaining years as a Fighter Pilot. He received many rewards for serving his country throughout his career. After 37 years of military service, he retired in 2003. JD also retired as an International Pilot for American Airlines.
In his years of volunteer service, he served on the Board of the Mental Health Association in Greater San Antonio, the San Antonio Airport Advisory Board and was the Texas Air National Guard Community Liaison Officer. Other volunteer activities included many years of mentoring at-risk students, building homes for Habitat for Humanity, and the Children’s Hospital fund-raisers.
JD is the Vice-Chair and Treasurer of the Classical Music Institute in San Antonio. His interest in music greatly increased over the years because of his son, Joseph Gonzalez, who is now a premiere percussionist.
Excerpted from Col. JD English | Classical Music Institute (cmi-sa.org)
