Lucky Bag Yearbook

From the 1946 Lucky Bag:

John Joseph Borbidge

Though Jack is an “Army Brat,” he forsook West Point to get his schooling here at Crabtown. He soon gained fame as a chowhound, always outdistancing his nearest competitor at any table. His interests were with football in the spring and fall, and he could be found on his sack the rest of the time. Few men have had a harder race with the Academic Department than Jack, but he made up for his academic deficiencies with an uncanny ability for identifying any airplane he might see or hear. His weaknesses, if we should call them that, are pretty nurses and classical music.

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The Class of 1946 was graduated in June 1945 due to World War II. The entirety of 2nd class (junior) year was removed from the curriculum.

Loss

From Find A Grave:

Inscription: In memory of Lt. John J. Borbidge USN, USNA, Fighter Pilot, Killed in Service, While Flying from an Aircraft Carrier Nov. 2, 1951

From the Tampa Times on November 2, 1951:

John was killed in a mid-air collision with another plane while flying over the Mediterranean Sea. He was attached to the aircraft carrier USS Franklin D. Roosevelt and left for the Mediterranean maneuvers last Labor Day.

Following a telegram from the Defense Department notifying Col. and Mrs. John Borbidge of their son’s accident, they received a letter from Capt. Fitzhugh Lee aboard the Roosevelt.

Tells of Accident
The letter read in part: The accident occurred 15 miles from the ship during operations in the Mediterranean while your son was flying formation rendezvous when his plane (a Corsair fighter bomber) collided with the plane on which he was joining.

“Rescue helicopters and a destroyer were immediately dispatched to the scene of the crash, but no significant trace was found of your son or his plane. Witnesses were convinced he was killed instantly.”

A brief memorial service was held at the scene of the accident by the USS Holder, the destroyer which searched the scene. Another memorial service was held aboard the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt on the following Sunday.

Served on Wasp
The young pilot had served aboard the carrier USS Wasp, and had been commander of an LSM. He had served three years in the Pacific before entering flight training. He received his wings at Pensacola in April, 1950.

Requiem high mass will be held for Lieutenant Borbidge at 7:30 A. M. Saturday at Christ the King Catholic Church.

In addition to his parents, he is survived by three brothers, George, Robert and David Borbidge, and a sister Lt. (jg) Dorothy Borbidge, WAVES.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

John graduated from Pocatello, Idaho, high school in 1940. Football 2, 3, 4; Track 2, 3, 4 (distance runner); Hi-Y 2, 3, 4; National Honor Society. He then attended the University of Idaho and Villanova.

John was stationed in Pearl Harbor in April 1948. In October, he went to Pensacola for flight training.

In addition to the memory marker in Arlington National Cemetery, there is another in California.

He was assigned to Fighter Squadron (VF) 174.

Photographs

From his high school yearbook

From his high school yearbook

From The Tampa Tribune on November 26, 1951

From The Tampa Times on November 26, 1951

From page 79 of the USS Coral Sea (CVB 43)'s 1951 cruise book.

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Daniel Connolly ‘48 was his squadron mate for at least a year — they were together for the previous deployment — and was lost a few months after Daniel.