Dad and Juliet at home around 1969.  Dad wore blue jeans during the years that we went camping and canoeing.  He stopped wearing blue jeans about 1970 when he started having neck and back surgeries and could no longer do the outdoorsy things he enjoyed so much.  The surgeries were a byproduct of his 1952 F-84 crash landing in the desert outside Luke where he broke his back.  The engine in his F-84 exploded on the air-to-air gunnery range and he didn't have enough altitude to bail out, and the aircraft did not have an ejection seat.  Dad said he was the only F-84 pilot to survive a desert landing.  He had the Right Stuff!

Actually, this is the correct photo of the Thunderbirds flying F-84 aircraft.  The other photo I posted was actually a flight of F-84s from a combat squadron stationed in Korea.

This photo of Johnny was taken just after he flew his first solo flight in the AT-6 Texan in 1951.  Goodfellow AFB, San Angelo, TX.  Dad was the only pilot he knew of that experienced a "runaway prop" in an AT-6.  That's when the prop pitch goes flat and you lose airspeed.  The only in-flight fix is counterintuitive - pull up almost vertical to load the prop and regain control of it - while you're losing airspeed to begin with.  Or, as they were instructed by the manufacturer, "Hang it on the prop!"  Not much fun if you don't have enough altitude to bail out or cannot recall your training in an emergency.  For some reason Dad experienced more than his share of aircraft mechanical failures.

A bit of USAF history here...  This is a photo of the original USAF Thunderbirds flight demonstration team in 1952.  They flew the same Republic F-84 Thunder Jet aircraft as Johnny.  There wasn't room for these aircraft at Luke, being wartime and such, so they were moved to Thunderbird Field across Phoenix.  And that's where the USAF Thunderbirds got their name.  Anyway, Johnny was occasionally asked to substitute for Thunderbird practice missions.  
Interestingly, the more popular flight demonstration team in the day was the Silver Sabres that flew newer F-86 aircraft out of Nellis AFB outside Las Vegas, NV.  For reasons unknown to me the Silver Sabres faded into obscurity and the Thunderbirds became a household name.

Dad with a big smile in 2011, likely over the Thanksgiving holiday.  I think he wore that hoodie until the very end, which is unusual for him since he rarely wore anything blue.  He said he wore blue every day in the Air Force and that was enough to last a lifetime - drove Mom crazy!

PePaw with Caitlin, Thanksgiving 2013.  Dad's favorite restaurants were the Mesquite Pit and Cotton Patch.  This looks like it was taken in the Cotton Patch where Dad's favorite dish was fried catfish.

Mother's Day, 2002.  Dad's only grandchild, Caitlin, always gets hugs and kisses from PePaw.

Mom and Dad, Christmas 1992.  Dad sure liked his loud, colorful shirts!  Three years after moving into their forever home.

Scanned image from 1952 AF yearbook.  Johnny with his new wings at Luke AFB, Phoenix, AZ.

OBITUARIO

Johnny William Evans

6 noviembre, 1927 – 18 septiembre, 2025

Cashner Funeral Home & Garden Park Cemetery

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