Skip to content

This Day in History – June 10, 1969 – The X-15 gets a place in history

10 June 1969: The U.S. Air Force donated the first North American Aviation X-15, serial number 56-6670, to the Smithsonian Institution for display at the National Air and Space Museum. The first of three X-15A hypersonic research rocketplanes built by North American for the Air Force and the National Advisory Committee (NACA, the predecessor of NASA), 56-6670 made the first glide flight and

Read More »
Main Menu
  • Home
  • History
    • About The SSS
    • Headed West
    • Biographies
    • Today in F-100 History
    • SSS Caterpillar
    • Wall of Honor
    • F-100 Information
    • Friends of the Super Sabre
    • N. American F-100 Super Sabre
  • Galleries
  • The Intake
    • About The Intake: Journal
    • The Intake: Journal of the Super Sabre Society – Archives
  • What’s New
  • Contact

Lowry, John J.

  • Home
  • Biography
  • Biographies
  • Lowry, John J.

John J. Lowry

Preferred Name: John
Date of Birth: April 30, 1941
Highest Military Grade: 0-4 – Major
Hometown: Columbus, OH
Headed West Date: April 17, 2023
Biography
Pilot Information
Headed West

John “was a tactical fighter pilot, flying F-100’s and A7D’s in the Ohio Air National Guard, earning the rank of Major. John worked for the U.S. Treasury, with the IRS as a Special Agent for the Criminal Investigation Division for 15 years and U.S. Customs as an Air Interdiction Officer for 12 years, until retirement in 1998.”(1)

Source: (1) https://www.azcentral.com/obituaries/par069258

Units Assigned

  • OHANG Lockbourne AFB, OH (F-100, A-7)
  • OHANG Rickenbacker AFB, OH (F-100, A-7)

Awards & Decorations

Flight Info

F-100
A-7

Military & Civilian Education

Civilian Education:

  • BS/Accounting, The Ohio State University

John J. Lowry, Maj OHANG, “Headed West” on April 17, 2023.

John Joseph Lowry, of Phoenix, passed away peacefully at home on April 17, 2023, with family members by his side after a ten-year journey with Alzheimer’s Disease.

John was born on April 30, 1941, in Columbus, Ohio to Murvin and Anna (Hohmann) Lowry, the second of seven brothers. John became a machinist and attended The Ohio State University where he graduated with a degree in Accounting, maintaining lifetime Buckeye blood. At OSU he met his wife, Marion Frey, and was married on December 18, 1971. He was a tactical fighter pilot, flying F-100’s and A7D’s in the Ohio Air National Guard, earning the rank of Major.

John worked for the U.S. Treasury, with the IRS as a Special Agent for the Criminal Investigation Division for 15 years and U.S. Customs as an Air Interdiction Officer for 12 years, until retirement in 1998. An expert on the paper trail, he loved researching genealogy and creating collages of pictures and complex information.

The family moved to Phoenix in 1986 and enjoyed taking annual cross-country trips to visit family and friends while visiting national parks in the 48 continental U.S. states.

John is survived by his wife of 51 years, Marion (Frey); son John (Michelle Phelan), daughter Jennifer (Mark Arnold), daughter Susan (Ken Brown), son Reverend Matthew, and daughter Ann (Ryan Howe); nine grandchildren; younger brothers, Jerry and James. He is predeceased by his parents, and brothers Robert, Thomas, William, and Michael.

A funeral Mass [was] celebrated on Tuesday, April 25, 2023.

In place of flowers, donations may be made to the Foundation for Senior Living (fsl.org), Hospice of the Valley (hov.org), or Alzheimer’s Association (alz.org). Condolences may be expressed at www.whitneymurphyfuneralhome.com.

Wall of Honor Location

Our Mission

The mission of the Super Sabre Society is to preserve the history of the F-100 Super Sabre and the men who flew the aircraft.

Follow Us

Copyright © 2025 Super Sabre Society
Website by: Heart and Soul Web Design
Scroll to Top