USAF ROTORHEAD Members

John C. Flournoy, Colonel Retired.

Colonel John C. Flournoy was the deputy chief of staff for operations, Twenty-Third Air Force, Hurlburt Field, Fla.

Colonel Flournoy was born Nov. 30, 1936 in Florala, Ala. He was educated in the public school system of Alabama and graduated from Vigor High School, Prichard, Ala., in 1955 and the Alabama Polytechnic Institute (Auburn) in 1959 with a bachelor of science degree in business administration. He is a graduate of Squadron Officers School, Air Command and Staff College and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces.

Colonel Flournoy enlisted in the Alabama National Guard in February 1954 as a private in the 31st Infantry, Dixie Division. He transferred to the Army Reserves as a corporal in 1956 and remained with the Army until transferring to the Air Force Reserve as an airman first class in 1957. In December 1959, Colonel Flournoy was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Air Force Reserve through the Air Force ROTC Program at Auburn, and was appointed second lieutenant in the Regular Air Force in February 1960.

His first commissinoed assignment was preflight pilot training at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, in February 1960; followed by primary pilot training at Graham Air Force Base, Fla.; basic pilot training at Laredo Air Force Base, Texas; and helicopter pilot training at Stead Air Force Base, Nev. After receiving his wings and helicopter training, Colonel Flournoy’s first operational assignment was with Detachment 1, Atlantic Air Rescue Center, Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, flying the H-19 and H-43 as a rescue crew commander from September 1961 to July 1965.

Returning stateside in 1965, Colonel Flournoy was assigned to Detachment 12, Eastern Aerospace Rescue Center at Moody Air Force Base, GA., as an H-43 instructor pilot and flight examiner. After 18 months at Moody, he was assigned as commander, Detachment 18, EARRC, Thule Air Base, Greenland. Returning from Thule in 1968 he became the H-43 standardization pilot for EARRC at Robins Air Force Base, GA. In October 1970, he was assigned to Scott Air Force Base, Ill., as the Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Service (ARRS) H-43 standardization pilot, and in December 1971, he became the ARRS H-1/H-43 standardization pilot. During this tour, he served numerous temporary duty assignments in Southeast Asia and, in 1974, he was assigned commander, of Detachment 4, 37th ARRS, Little Rock Air Force Base, Ark. After 18 months at Little Rock, he was selected as chief, Rescue Services Division, Headquarters, Military Airlift Command Inspector General, and returned to Scott Air Force Base, Ill. In December 1978, he completed qualification in the H-53 and assumed his fourth command as 55th ARRS commander, Eglin AFB, Fla., in January 1979

He moved across the street to the 39th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Wing in November 1980, first as Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, then becoming the Director of Operations in May 1981. He returned to Scott Air Force Base, IL., for his third tour in March 1983 as the Twenty-Third Air Force Assistant Director of Operations.
Colonel Flournoy assumed the position of Twenty-Third Air Force Director of Operations in May 1986 prior to the unit moving to Hurlburt Field, FL.

He was promoted to the grade of Colonel in January 1981, with a date of rank of November 28, 1980.

He is married to the former Charlene Renee’ Lett of Prichard, AL. The have three children: Jamie, Jay and Jeff, eight grandchildren, and one great grandson. John’s hometown is Florala, AL.

Colonel Flournoy was awarded the Legion of Merit upon his retirement from active duty, August 1988.

Added

Mr. Flournoy and Charlene relocated from FL. to NM. in October 1988 where John assumed the position of Site Manager for Link/Hughes Training for the Aircrew Training Simulator operations at Kirtland AFB. He became the Mission Training Simulator Support Training Manager prior to his retirement from Hughes/Raytheon in 1998. He then worked for the Air Force Research Lab at Kirtland, followed by three months in Colorado Springs with Boeing working on the National Missile Defense Program. He returned to Kirtland to consult with the Research Lab and the USAF Safety Center until fully retiring in 2002.

The Flournoy’s are active members of the Kirtland and Albuquerque communities and reside in Albuquerque, NM.

CURRENT AS OF JANUARY 2007