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First Name
John
Middle Name
C.
Last Name
Ensch
Birthdate
Hometown
Springfield, IL
Rank
Captain
Service Branch
Navy
Date Captured
Date Repatriated
Pre Capture Image
PreCapture Description
Jack Ensch enlisted in the U.S. Army on August 9, 1956, and served as a NIKE I Missile Systems Instructor before going into the Army Reserve and completing college. After completing Officer Candidate School, he was commissioned in the U.S. Navy on May 28, 1965. Ensch then completed Naval Flight Officer School and Radar Intercept Officer training before joining the Replacement Air Group at VF-121, NAS Miramar, where he was trained as an F-4 Phantom II RIO. Lieutenant Ensch served several tours in Vietnam with VF-21 on the USS Coral Sea and USS Ranger. After serving as an Admiral's aide from June 1968 to September 1970, Ensch went through F-4 refresher training and then served again in Southeast Asia, flying with VF-161 off the USS Midway from January 1971 to August 1972. During this time, Lieutenant Ensch was credited with destroying 2 enemy MiG-17 aircraft in aerial combat. On August 25, 1972, Lieutenant Ensch was forced to eject over North Vietnam and was taken as a Prisoner of War.
Post Release Image
Post Release Description
Lieutenant Commander Ensch was released during “Operation Homecoming” on March 29, 1973. Lieutenant Commander Ensch then served as Executive Officer and Tactics Instructor at the Navy Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN) at NAS Miramar, California. Lieutenant Commander Ensch completed two Western Pacific deployments aboard the USS Enterprise (CVN-65) before becoming Executive Officer of VF-124. Ensch served two years on the staff of the Chief of Naval Operations before becoming Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations with Carrier Group SIX. He next served as Operations Officer on the staff of the Commander of the Airborne Early Warning Wing Pacific and then as Commanding Officer of the Naval Air Station at Key West, Florida. In July 1991, he transferred to the Chief of Naval Education and Training in Pensacola as the Inspector General. Captain Ensch next served as Commander of the Naval Training Center San Diego from June 1993 until his retirement from the Navy on November 12, 1995. Following retirement, Jack joined the San Diego Padres Baseball Club as Director of Military Marketing, and established the only military marketing department in all of professional sports. During his military career, Captain Ensch accumulated over 3,000 flying hours and over 800 carrier landings in F-4 Phantoms and F-14 Tomcats. He also flew 285 combat missions during the Vietnam War. He is married to the former Kathryn Ubben of Pekin, Illinois, and they have three daughters-Elizabeth, Rebecca, and Christine.
Honors, Citations, and Commendations
- Navy Cross
- Legion of Merit (3)
- Bronze Star (2)
- Prisoner of War Medal
Passed away before release
Post Release