Lt. Col. Duane G. (Pappy) Lynch passed away at his home in Gulf Shores at 5:13
a.m. April 10, 2013 after a long illness. He was 91.
Pappy is survived by his loving wife, Sharon Lynch of the home; Laury Torrence and Kevin Nollenberg; Chris Nevil, Doris Jean Bretz. Linda (Leon) Shook, Jim (Sue) Lynch and Ken Lynch; 14 grandchildren and 21 great-grandchildren.
He was predeceased by a son, Rick Lynch; brother, Phil; and sister, Leah.
Pappy was born April 4, 1922 in Denver, Colo., but moved with his parents at age 2 to Benton Harbor, Mich.
In 1940, he enrolled in Parks Air College, St. Louis University where he studied airlines operations management and became an aviator.
Following Pearl Harbor, Pappy embarked on a military flying career. He received his flight training at the Naval Air Training Center in Corpus Christi, graduating as a Naval Aviator in 1944. He then transferred to the U.S. Marine Corps as a second lieutenant on flight status.
At the end of the war, Pappy made 42 trips ferrying airplanes back to the states. With the end of World War II, Pappy returned to civilian life but continued military flying as a member of the Marine Corps Reserves, and for several years he owned and operated a crop-dusting business.
His squadron was called back into activity duty, and he piloted various fighters and dive bombers from aircraft carriers. He transitioned to jets and his squadron was assigned to Glenview Naval Air Station in Chicago.
During the Korean War, as a member of the First Marine Aircraft Wing from December 5, 1951 to January 27, 1952, Pappy completed 212 missions and received the Distinguished Flying Cross for valor. Pappy also served as an instructor pilot at NAS Pensacola.
During the Cuban missile crisis in 1962, Pappy’s squadron was ordered to duty at Key West, Fla. On that occasion, President John F. Kennedy met Pappy and reviewed the troops.
Pappy’s last assignment was in the Pentagon in the office of the Chief of Naval Operations where he was the Marine representative on the staff for Air Weapons Systems Analysis.
During his military service, Pappy became qualified in 35 different aircraft and flew many of them into combat missions from five different aircraft carriers. In the process he logged 14,000 hours flying time.
He was the honored recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal, the Organized Marine Reserve Medal, the American Defense Service Medal, the American Campaign Services Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Presidential Unit Citation.
Lt. Col. Lynch retired from the Pentagon in 1968 after 26 years of service. He transitioned back to civilian life, but continued his love for flying and accepted a position as corporate pilot for U.S. Steel and Foundry.
He and his family moved to Derby, Kan., and Pappy was hired as a program manager and corporate pilot for the president of Beech Aircraft Corp. in Wichita. At Beech, Pappy was one of two engineers who developed the T34C training plane used by the Navy to train pilots at Whiting field. A memorable occasion was piloting Mr. Beech to Pensacola for the opening of the Naval Air Museum.
Ever mindful of his civic obligations, Pappy campaigned for and was elected mayor of Derby, where he served for two years. Pappy also went into the real estate business in Derby, along with his mayoral duties.
The Lynches moved from Derby to Bella Vista, Ark. in 1981 where Pappy continued in real estate. In 1984 Pappy and Sharon made their first visit to Gulf Shores as “snowbirds.” Being an avid golfer throughout his life, Pappy was impressed with the beautiful golf courses in the area. Therefore, in the summer of 1990, they became permanent residents.
In Gulf Shores, Pappy transferred his real estate license to Kaiser Realty. In 2001, he was honored with the Kaiser Island Spirit Award. After 17 years, Pappy retired from Kaiser in February 2006.
Pappy and Sharon were active members of Our Lady of the Gulf Catholic Church.
Pappy was a member of the American Legion and a charter member of the Knights of Columbus. In addition, he was a co-founder and member of the Ancient Aviators in Gulf Shores.
Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated at Our Lady of the Gulf Catholic Church in Gulf Shores on Friday, April 12. Mass was preceded by a visitation and followed by a reception in the parish hall.
Interment was April 15, 2013 in Fort Barancas National Cemetery in Pensacola.
Pallbearers were Richard Upchurch, Robert Johnson, George Thompson, Leonard Kaiser, Daniel Reeves, Louis William Sabatino, Robert Neibling and John Henderson.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to St. Benedict School, P.O. Drawer 819, Elberta, AL 36530.
Pappy lived a full life. He did it his way, and will be missed by the many friends he cultivated over the years.
ONCE A MARINE, ALWAYS A MARINE — SEMPER FIDELIS!
