Lucky Bag Yearbook

From the 1946 Lucky Bag:

John Brewster Caskey

Coming to the Academy directly from high school, Jack soon proved his ability to handle his studies with ease and become an outstanding athlete at the same time. “The Moose” early in his career became the “plebe sensation” of the varsity track team, winning his N-star in his first year. Proud owner of the widest grin in the Academy, his real depth of character is brought out only by the little things, such as the motto pasted in his locker revealing his firm conviction that “nothing is impossible if you really try.”

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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 Aviation Safety:

The USN aircraft carrier Boxer and the attendant ships of her carrier task group were exercising in the South China sea.

Four F8F Bearcats of VF-194 took off from Boxer to carry out a practice Combat Air Patrol over the ships. At the completion of the CAP the Bearcats were ordered to join the rest of CAG 19 in a simulated low-level strike on the ships.

The four VF-194 pilots made a head-on run at the USS Helena which was proceeding on the port bow of the USS Boxer, and about 2,000 yards off. This move potentially brought them into conflict with a flight of Douglas AD-3 Skyraiders of VA-195, also from the Boxer, and making a 90 degree attack on the carrier’s starboard side.

The Skyraiders had completed their attacking run at about the same time as the Bearcats completed theirs.

Just after the Bearcats passed the Helena one of them was seen to climb slightly and commence a turn to the left, colliding at about 400 feet with the leader of the four VA-195 Skyraiders in its path. The Bearcat struck the right wing of the Skyraider at a relative angle of about 45 degrees and passed on to the fuselage just aft of the wing. The AD-3 Skyraider, serial no. 122759, was seen to disintegrate and fall into the sea. The F8F-2 Bearcat lost a wing in the impact which occurred at a closing speed of about 400 knots. It tumbled through the air and crashed in the sea about 500 yards from the point of the collision.

LtJG John B. Caskey USN was killed in the accident, as was LtJG Henry Graefe USN, the pilot of the Skyraider.

He has a memory marker in New York; the inscription includes “19th Bomber Squadron USS Boxer.” This is incorrect.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

John graduated from Jamestown High School in 1942. John’s half mile time in 1940 of 2:03.5 was still a county record 23 years later. His father was Gideon, a furniture salesman, mother Gertrude.

Photographs

From his high school yearbook

Related Articles

Henry Graefe ‘46 was also lost in this collision.

Milton Turner ‘45 was a member of John’s squadron and lost almost exactly two months later.

Vincent Barry ‘46 was also a member of 10th Company.