Foil: 63 Panel: 4 Column: 1 Line: 104

Wall of Honor Level:
Air and Space Friend

Honored by:
Jane Engler

James Henderson was a Marine fighter pilot with the Wake Island Defenders (VMF 211) from 1945 - 1950. He served in China as the Communists were advancing and trained many Chinese in how to fly and defend the air. He flew a Corsair F4U and had several stories of exciting landings on some of the earliest air craft carrier decks. Shortly after his service he worked for Chance Vought in Texas as an engineer and eventually worked for Jack Northrop at Edwards Air Force Base as a primary engineer in the developing the sled system for testing the earliest versions of the flight ejection systems. He was a member of the Experimental Test Pilots Association and was proud of his years of service. Even as he moved into the private sector he continued to work on military contracts suppling doors of all kind for the Navy. He owned and managed Advanced Structures Corporation that manufactured the doors and honeycomb panels. He also owner Pacific Marine and Unicel Corp. which also contracted with the Navy for other products. Needless, to say I am incredibly proud of my father’s accomplishments and have felt that he deserved some recognition for his years of contributions. He was an incredibly humble man for being as successful as he was and never wanted any attention. It took me a long time to understand the mindset of that generation of soldier. However, I would like my father to be remembered and it would mean the world to my mother to have his name on the wall and a profile so that there is a legacy of him somewhere. I am an elementary teacher and cannot afford the $500, but if I could I would gladly donate it. Your museum is fabulous and one of the last memories I have with my father was visiting the museum to see your Corsair. I took my own kids this summer to see it while we were visiting from California.