John W. Van Etten, III

Preferred Name: Van
Nickname/Call Sign: Nail 32
Date of Birth: March 31, 1946
Highest Military Grade: 0-3 – Captain
Hometown: Battle Ground, IN

“Was awarded “Top Gun” in both gunnery schools, flew 198 combat missions in all theaters of SEA, received 2 DFC’s for search & rescue missions. I was one of the on-scene commanders in the “Bat 21” SAR.

Flew the Combat Evaluation missions for the new Pave Nail aircraft.

I know John Egan.”

“John Van Etten’s first recollection of seeing an airplane came when he was at the tender age of 2 on his parents’ farm in Terra Haute, Ind.

“Someone had landed a Piper J-3 Cub in the field across from our barn,” Van Etten said. “Somewhere there’s a picture of me sitting at the base of the tail.”

Growing up, Van Etten would make models of planes in school and dabble with radio-controlled planes in his basement.

Little did the now 70-year-old Van Etten know that some 20 years later he’d be involved in the United States Air Force’s most famous, largest, longest and most complex search-and-rescue operations during the Vietnam War.”(1)

 

Source: (1) Nail32: John Van Etten part of Air Force’s rich history, Recent Rotary Club of Petoskey inductee John Van Etten part of Air Force’s rich history by Steve Foley(231) 439-9397 – spfoley@petoskeynews.com
The Petoskey News-Review