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Hector Santa Anna
Posted 12/13/06
Lt. Col. Hector "Jim" Santa Anna, 83 DOVER - Lt. Col Hector "Jim" Santa Anna of Dover, formerly of Millersville, Md., died Saturday, Dec. 9, 2006, in Bayhealth-Kent General Hospital, Dover, after a …
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Hector Santa Anna
Posted
Lt. Col. Hector "Jim" Santa Anna, 83
DOVER - Lt. Col Hector "Jim" Santa Anna of Dover, formerly of Millersville, Md., died Saturday, Dec. 9, 2006, in Bayhealth-Kent General Hospital, Dover, after a long illness. He was 83.
Mr. Santa Anna was born Feb. 26, 1923, in Miami, Ariz.
He joined the Army Air Corps in 1942. He spent a lifetime devoted to aviation. During World War II he flew 37 missions as a B-17 pilot. He was shot down several times and he and his crew hold the record for the most missions flown in the shortest period of time. He later flew 127 missions on the Berlin Air Lift.
After World War II he graduated from the University of Maryland at College Park with a bachelor"s degree in business. He later completed graduate work in public administration at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Mr. Santa Anna"s accomplishments as one of the few Hispanic World War II pilots have been highlighted in many books and documentaries, including Walter Cronkite"s "Heroes of World War II."
He retired in 1985 after serving 42 years in the U.S. Air Force, the Federal Aviation Administration and NASA.
His life was recently portrayed in James Garcia"s play "Voices of Valor" which was preformed at the University of Texas in Austin last spring.
Mr. Santa Anna continued his passion for flight in his retirement as a private flight instructor at the Navy Flying Club in Annapolis, Md., and more recently as a volunteer at the Air Mobility Command Museum at Dover Air Force Base.
He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Olive (Allen) Santa Anna; two daughters, Sylvia Willoughby and Cynthia Abi-Habib; and five grandchildren.
Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday in Trader Funeral Home Inc., 12 Lotus St., Dover.
Burial with full military honors will be 3 p.m. Dec. 22 in Arlington National Cemetery.
Instead of flowers, the family suggests memorial contributions to The Air Mobility Command Museum Foundation, P.O. Box 02050, Dover Air Force Base, Dover, DE 19902.