John V. Cox was commissioned a Marine Corps second lieutenant upon his graduation from Officers Basic School in September, 1952 and was assigned to naval aviator training shortly afterward. He completed flight training and was designated a Naval Aviator in July, 1954. Lieutenant Cox first assignment was to Marine Corps Air Station Miami and the aircraft carrier, the first of a dozen carriers he would serve on in his career. In 1957, after completing a one-year tour as an air and naval gunfire platoon leader, Cox was assigned to VMF-451 flying the FJ-4 Fury from duty stations at MCAS El Toro, NAF Atsugi, and PingTung, Taiwan during the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis. After transitioning to the Vought F-8 Crusader, Cox joined VMFA-333 in 1959 and later returned to Quantico to attend Communications Officers School in 1962. Following the latest schooling he returned to MCAS El Toro as Communications Officer of MAG-15 and then Operations officer for VMA-513. During the latter assignment Cox did his first of two tours in Vietnam, flying 95 combat missions in the F-4 Phantom. In 1965 Cox returned to the Midwestern U.S. for duty at NAS Olathe, and then Armed Forces Staff College in 1967. He served two years as an instructor at the Naval War College from 1967 to 1969 then was named commanding officer of VMFA-115. Now a Lieutenant Colonel, Cox returned to Vietnam from 1969 to 1970 for a second tour of duty as both commander of VMFA-115 and executive officer of Marine Aircraft Group 13, stationed at Chu Lai Air Base. Colonel Cox achieved a career milestone during the tour and was featured in the May 24, 1970 Pacific edition of Stars and Stripes as he flew his 200th combat mission and achieved 4,000 accident-free flying hours on the same mission. Following his second Vietnam tour, Colonel Cox served in varied positions throughout the early and mid-1970s, including serving on the staff of Commander in Chief, Pacific Command under Admiral John S. McCain, Jr. and executive officer of MCAS Kaneohe Bay. Cox was selected to attend the National War College, which he graduated from in 1974, and then served at Headquarters Marine Corps. While in the Washington, D.C. area he also earned a Master's degree in International Affairs from George Washington University. John V. Cox was promoted to Brigadier general on November 4, 1977. With his new rank he served in assignments as Assistant commander of the 1st Marine Air Wing, commanding general of the 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade, and duty as Assistant Chief of Staff then Deputy Chief of Staff for Research, Development and Studies as Headquarters Marine Corps. He began the 1980s as commanding general of MCAS El Toro, and was promoted to Major General on April 9, 1981. Cox served as commanding general of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing until May, 1982. In June of that year General Cox began his final assignment in the Marine Corps as Director of Operations for the Commander in Chief at Camp H. M. Smith, Hawaii. He retired from the Marine Corps on July 1, 1985. During his career he amassed 5,043 hours total flight time and was a rated pilot in nearly every Marine Corps fixed-wing aircraft of the Cold War era, including the F6F Hellcat, AD-4 Skyraider, FJ-4 Fury, F8U Crusader, and F-4 Phantom II. After retirement Major General Cox remained active with the Navy League of the United States, the Marine Corps Aviation Association, Navy Relief, and occasional speaking engagements. General Cox and wife Pat reside in McLean, Virginia.
