As a boy in WWII, Joe Walter determined that his calling was to be a Navy fighter pilot. Following his dream, he entered the Naval Academy with the Class of 1955. There he got his first flight in the "Yellow Peril," the N3N floatplane. Over the next thirty years he’d get a chance to fly almost everything in the Navy’s inventory, several USAF and NATO aircraft, and a number of commercial planes.

After the Academy he went to Pensacola for flight training in SNJs. Then on to Kingsville, Texas for jet training in TV-2s and F9F-5s. He did a short stint with FASRON 5, flying whatever was available, before joining VF-41 where he flew F2H-3 Banshees until these were replaced by F3H-2 Demons. He had some close calls in the Demon, including three flameouts, one resulting in an ejection over the Atlantic.

Joe attended the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, and obtained his master's degree at Princeton. Thoroughly educated, he was then assigned to VF-103 in Oceana, to fly the fighter pilot’s fighter - the F-8E Crusader. A few years later he transitioned to F-4B Phantoms and served as an instructor with VF-101, flying out of Key West. During his years with East Coast squadrons, he made several deployments to the Mediterranean.

Joe got a two-year NATO tour at the German “Führungsakademie der Bundeswehr” (Staff College) where he also served as a squadron pilot in the German Air Force. Next came McDonnell Douglas in St Louis as the Navy Plant Representative, monitoring the F-4, F-15 Eagle, and Harpoon programs. Then on to NAVAIR in Crystal City, where as the F-14 Class Desk officer, he played a pivotal role turning a troubled Tomcat program into one of aviation’s great success stories.

He was then assigned as AIRLANT’s Engineering and Materiel Officer, responsible for the readiness of all the aircraft in the Atlantic Fleet. His final tour was as Commanding Officer of Naval Air Rework Facility Pensacola, thus returning to his starting point in Naval Aviation.

After the Navy, he was president of Grumman's St Augustine Corporation, directing the refurbishment of E-2C Hawkeyes and A-6 Intruders, civilian HU-16 Albatross, and A-4 Skyhawks for Malaysia. He then became president of Pemco’s Dothan, AL plant, converting airliners to cargo planes.

Joe now resides on the Outer Banks with Genie, wife of sixty years, where they welcome visits from children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and former shipmate