John Entstrasser, Jr. '51
Date of birth: November 4, 1927
Date of death: March 29, 1954
Age: 26
Lucky Bag
From the 1951 Lucky Bag:
John Jay Entstrasser, Jr.
Hicksville, New York
Affectionately known as the "Big E" . . . hails from Hicksville down Long Island way, but it's not held against him . . . pride of the home town . . . makes the paper every week . . . came from the fleet and is striking for a set of golden wings . . . his baritone voice is heard in the choir every Sunday . . . and off key in the shower every day . . . president of ye radiator squad when not indulging in company basketball and cross country ... a submariner who loved the A & B tests . . . greatest pleasures—eating and dragging . . . "Now what is her name?" . . . wingman of the flying squadron every Saturday night ... a thirty year man, so he has our best wishes for a blue and gold career.
Loss
Though the description of his loss on Find A Grave says he was practicing maneuvers in Virginia, contemporary newspaper reports say that John was lost when his AD-4 Skyraider crashed on approach to NAS Jacksonville, FL. (Corroborated by SHIPMATE.)
He was survived by his wife, Audrey, and his two-month-old son, John Jay III. (Information from May 1954 issue of SHIPMATE.)
The date of the crash was March 29, 1954. He is buried in New York.
Class of 1951
John is one of 48 members of the Class of 1951 on Virtual Memorial Hall.
