Foil: 22 Panel: 3 Column: 1 Line: 20

Wall of Honor Level:
Air and Space Sponsor

Honored by:
Fritz Oesterle Erich Seitz Stephanie Weeks

LCDR James Edward Oesterle was born in Philadelphia, PA in 1930. He joined the Civil Air Patrol as a cadet in 1946, enlisted in the Naval Reserve as a Seaman in 1947 and accepted an appointment as Midshipman in the NROTC program in 1948. He received his commission in 1953 and his wings in 1953. Training was in SNJ and AD type aircraft. Active duty was with Attack Squadron 125 in Air Group 12, were he flew Skyraider BuNo 135332 as his personal aircraft.
The tour of duty included a WestPac tour upon the USS Hancock, CVA-19 as a special weapons delivery pilot. He earned the Navy "E" for proficiency in special weapons delivery.
His stories of life in the training command, in the squadron readiness missions and during the cruise have kept us entertained and attentive for hours at a time. After his release from active duty, he continued flying, earning single and multi-engine ratings with instruments on a Commercial License. His hobby since early boyhood in Philadelphia has been with designing, building, and flying model aircraft, with thousands of hours in the radio control aspects of the activity.