MajGen John V. COX, USMC (Ret), Golden Eagle Emeritus
 

Gentlemen,
 
It is my sad duty to inform you that on Sunday, 1 March 2026, Golden Eagle Emeritus MajGen John V. COX, USMC (Ret), made his Last Take Off at his home in McLean, Virginia, with his wife and family by his side. John was in home hospice care. He was one month from his 96th birthday.
 
John, the son of coal miner Norris Cox and his wife Ruth, was born on 26 March 1930 and raised in Bevier, Missouri, a small rural community, in the midst of the Great Depression and World War II. He attended Northeast Missouri State Teachers College and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration. While in college he met the love of his life and future wife, Patricia. On graduation he entered the U.S. Marine Corps via the Officer Candidate School program and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in September 1952. With his completion of The Basic School, he reported for aviation training, earning his Wings of Gold on 28 July 1954. His time in flight school also marked his marriage to Pat in December 1953. In the training command he flew the SNJ Texan, the SNB (Beech 18) Expeditor, the F6F Hellcat, and the T2V SeaStar. John’s first operational tour was to MCAS Miami, Florida, where he flew the AD4B (later re-designated A-1) Skyraider. He also spent some time aboard USS Lake Champlain (CVA 39) during this tour.
 
Completing his tour at MCAS Miami in 1956, John was next assigned to Camp Lejeune, North Carolina to the Air Naval Gunfire Platoon where he flew the SNB and the SNJ. This one-year tour was followed by orders to the VMF-451 Warlords, stationed at MCAS El Toro, California, Atsugi, Japan, and PingTung, North Taiwan, flying the FJ-4 Fury. His time in the squadron included operations during the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis. In 1959 John transitioned to the F8U-2 Crusader while en route to the VMF-333 Fighting Shamrocks stationed at MCAS Beaufort, South Carolina. The squadron was the first Marine unit to employ the Crusader. Departing the squadron in 1962, John attended Communications Officer School at MCS Quantico, managing to log some T-28 Trojan time while there, prior to reporting to Marine Air Group 11 at MCAS El Toro, California as the communications officer. In this one-year tour from 1962–1963 he maintained his aviation proficiency flying the T-1A (T2V) SeaStar.
 
In 1963 John transitioned to the F-4B Phantom II and joined the VMFA-513 Fighting Nightmares at MCAS El Toro, serving as the Operations Officer. In October 1964 the squadron deployed to Atsugi, Japan, and in June 1965 to Da Nang, Vietnam, where he flew 95 combat missions. Completing this tour in late 1965 John next reported to the Marine Air Reserve Detachment (MARD) at NAS Olathe, Kansas, flying the F-8, A-4 Skyhawk, and the T-1A for this two-year tour. His follow-on orders were to Armed Forces Staff College (AFSC) in Norfolk, Virginia as a student and then to the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, as an instructor, reporting aboard in 1967. Once again John maintained aviation proficiency flying the A-4 and T-1A at AFSC and the T-1A at the War College. 
 
John left instructor duty at the War College in 1969, briefly reporting to VMFA-312 at MCAS Beaufort prior to reporting to the VMFA-115 Silver Eagles in Chu Lai, Vietnam. During a very busy tour from 1969–1970, John served as the Officer-in-Charge of Chu Lai Air Base, as Executive Officer of Marine Aircraft Group 13, and as Commanding Officer of VMFA-115, taking command on 2 March 1970. He flew 197 combat missions in the F-4B. Notably, in April the squadron set a record for Vietnam operations by flying 721 sorties, logging 733 combat flight hours while supporting six major ground operations and 14 different units. On completion of this tour, John reported to Marine Aircraft Group 11 at MCAS El Toro, California, for a short tour prior to his next tour as Executive Officer of MCAS Kaneohe, Hawaii from 1971–1972. While there he flew the T-28. Remaining in Hawaii, John next reported to Commander in Chief, Pacific (CINCPAC) for staff duty joining the J-5 directorate as an action officer, from 1972–1973. Once again, he maintained aviation currency flying the T-28.
 
In 1973 John attended the National War College in Washington, D.C. During this same time frame, he also earned a Master of Science degree in international affairs from George Washington University. Graduating from his one-year course of instruction at the War College in 1974, he reported to Headquarters Marine Corps for a three plus year tour. During this tour John was instrumental in leading the charge to establish Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron One (MAWTS-1) at MCAS Yuma, greatly enhancing pilot proficiency, safety, and operational readiness across Marine aviation. At the completion of this tour in 1978, John completed a training track at MCAS Cherry Point and MCAS Yuma flying the A-4, TA-4, OV-10 Bronco, CH-46 Sea Knight, and F-4J prior to reporting as the Assistant Wing Commander, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, and Commanding General, 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade in Okinawa, Japan. Completing this tour in 1979, he went back to Washington, D.C., to serve as assistant chief of staff and the deputy chief of staff for research, development and studies at Headquarters Marine Corps. Following another cross-country move, John assumed command as Commanding General, MCAS El Toro in 1980. While there he flew the station UH-1 Huey. In May 1981 he became Commanding General, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, based in El Toro, and flew the F-4, A-4, A-6 Intruder, AH-1 Cobra, UH-1, CH-46, and the CH-53 Sea Stallion. Completing this command tour in May 1982, John reported as Director of Operations, J-3, at CINCPAC, Camp Smith, Hawaii, in June. He served in this capacity until his retirement from active duty on 1 July 1985.
 
In John’s 33 years of active duty, he accumulated 5,054 flight hours and 178 carrier arrested landings, flying virtually every aircraft in the Marine Corps inventory from the SNJ to the F-4. He had over 3,600 hours in jets, and almost 1,200 hours in props.  During two combat tours in Vietnam, he flew 292 combat missions, earning the Legion of Merit with Combat “V”, Bronze Star with Combat “V”, Air Medal with numeral 19, and the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat “V’ and gold star in lieu of a second award. Without question, John was at the forefront in leading Marine Aviation from the post-Korean war days to the modern era.
 
In retirement John continued his life of service, contributing to military and veteran support organizations in leadership roles. He served on the board of directors for The Retired Officers Association (now MOAA), on the board of the Navy Marine Corps Residence Association and assisted the Navy Marine Corps Relief Society providing oversight and support of the financial assistance programs. He remained closely connected with the Navy League, the Marine Corps Aviation Association, and other associations. John was also a lifelong advocate for education, and supported his alma mater, renamed Truman State University, throughout his career. In 2007 he received the Distinguished Service Award from Truman State, which acknowledges outstanding volunteer and philanthropic service by alumni, faculty, staff, and supporters. He and his wife Pat, whom he met during his college years at Truman State, were further honored with Truman State’s President’s Leadership Award in 2022, the university’s most prestigious accolade for exceptional dedication through volunteerism, expertise and financial support. In 2021 John and Pat also established the Cox McMichael Scholarship for First Americans at Truman State, an endowed fund supporting Native American students with full tuition and room and board awards to foster educational opportunities in their home state.
 
John is survived by his beloved wife of 72 years, Pat, and their four children, Allison, Donna, Janet, and John, eight grandchildren, and twelve great-grandchildren. Interment will be at Arlington National Cemetery at a future date. That information will be provided in a special notice when known.
 
He will be missed.
 
In sadness,
Marty CHANIK
Pilot