Birth: 5 Jan 1907 - McLennan Co., Texas, United States
Death: 29 May 1996 - Coatesville, Chester, Pennsylvania, United States
Parents: John Franklin Kane, Birdie Minnie Wright

John; Married to Pansy Inabnett of Shreveport, LA. one child, John F Kane, born about 1939.

Colonel John Riley "Killer" Kane retired from service in 1956. He settled onto a farm in Logan County, Arkansas.

But upon the death of his second wife, *** Phyllis, in 1987 *** he moved to Pennsylvania to be near his only child, son John Franklin Kane, and John's wife, Donna. It was while living at at Veterans Administration Nursing Home in Pennsylvania that Colonel Kane, one of the true but understated heroes of World War II, died on May 29, 1996. He was 89 years old. On June 18, 1996, Colonel John Riley "Killer" Kane was buried
with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery.

Arlington National Cemetery; Medal of Honor Reciepeint.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

JOHN 'KILLER' KANE, 88, A WWII HERO: Newspaper Obituary and Death Notice
Philadelphia Inquirer, The (PA) - Saturday, June 1, 1996
Deceased Name: JOHN 'KILLER' KANE, 88, A WWII HERO
John Riley ''Killer'' Kane, 88, a bomber pilot who earned the Congressional
Medal of Honor for leading a daring attack on the Ploesti oil fields in
southern Romania in World War II, died in his sleep Wednesday at the Veterans
Medical Center nursing home in Coatesville.

Col. Kane, who served 25 years in the military, completed 43 combat
missions in the Middle East, where he saw 250 hours of combat that earned him the
nation's highest military award and other honors.

During one 1943 mission in the Balkans, his B-24 Liberator bomber was
separated from other aircraft in the formation, but survived a machine-gun attack
by a pursuing Nazi fighter plane. The bomber's tail and top turret guns
were disabled, but Col. Kane was able to outmaneuver the enemy fighter and flew
his aircraft home safely.

He earned the Silver Star for that exploit.

Later in 1943, Col. Kane participated in a low-altitude bombing assault on
the oil fields in Ploesti, which at the time was virtually the only oil
supply for German forces.

On the way to the oil refineries - a 2,400-mile round trip from Benghazi,
Libya, without fighter escort protection - the three bomber groups on the
mission were beset with problems.

The lead navigator plane crashed into the Mediterranean, and the backup
navigator plane had to turn back because of mechanical problems. Visibility was
poor, and some bombers in the group were separated from the main formation
and headed south for Bucharest, about 80 miles off course.

Col. Kane guided his group on course at treetop level to avoid radar
detection. When the planes arrived at the target, Col. Kane saw that another
bomber group had missed its target and had bombed the area assigned to his 98th
Bomb Group.

Although the well-warned enemy now had anti-aircraft batteries and fighters
at the ready, Col. Kane's formation went in and destroyed the target, and
in the process his aircraft lost two of its four engines and was forced to
land in Cyprus.

Of the 164 aircraft that took off, 53 did not return.

In addition to Medal of Honor for his leadership, flying skill and courage,
Col. Kane also earned the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Legion of
Merit.

His nickname, friends said, was taken from a character in the Buck Rogers
comic strip.

Col. Kane was born in Eagle Spring, Texas, graduated from Baylor
University, where he played football and basketball, and completed one year of medical
school in St. Louis, Mo.

''But he didn't like cutting up dead people and he dropped out,'' said his
daughter-in-law, Donna Kane of Havertown.

He joined the military in 1931 in Shreveport, La., as an air cadet and
learned to fly at various military fields in Texas. He was stationed at
installations of the Army Air Corps, which preceded the Air Force, and he eventually
went to England before serving in the Middle East.

Col. Kane also is survived by a son, John F., and two grandchildren.

Services will be at 1 p.m. June 18 at Arlington National Cemetery.

COL KANE (ALSO); He won a Distinguished Flying Cross for a raid on Naples, Italy, in December 1942.