USAFA Class Heritage

Retired Maj Air Force 84: CP (Command Pilot): 

D: 11 Feb 2019;

84-04: DomaslicEngr/TransportationSpac;

79-84: Plt (Pilot)/OpnsO (Operations Officer) Dat10 37AR (Arkansas)&RSq FEWarrenAFB;

76-79: AOintelO O/Clnte/WarningO Det1 615AC&WSq RamsteinGW;

76: MA (Massachusetts , Master of Arts) EuropeanAreaStudies UnivWA;

73-76: AFAITC (Armed Forces Air Intelligence) LowryAFB;

71-73: Plt42AR (Arkansas)&RSq McChordAFB/Detcmdr 40AR (Arkansas)&RSq TakhliABTH;

70-71: Plt38AR (Arkansas)&RSq UbonABTH;

66-70: Acftcmdr/lnstrPlt (Instructor Pilot) 22MASq (Military Airlift Squadron) TachikawaABJA;

64-66: Pit (Pilot) 8ATSq McChordAFB;

63-64: PltTng (Pilot Training) ReeseAFB; 

2MSM (Meritorious Service Medal)-BAM-1AFCM (Air Force Commendation Medal)

(following from https://www.tributearchive.com/obituaries/4211497/John-Sandford-Bouchard/wall)

John Sandford Bouchard, known to family and friends as "Sandy," was born July 15, 1941, in Missoula, Montana, to Joseph and Cynthia Bouchard. He graduated from Missoula County High School in 1959, where he held leadership positions, before receiving an appointment to the Air Force Academy from Senator James E. Murray. At the Academy, he sang nationally with the Air Force Academy Chorale and graduated in 1963.

Commissioned a Second Lieutenant, John completed flight training at Reese Air Force Base, Texas, then flew heavy-lift transport missions during the Vietnam era out of McChord Air Force Base, Washington, and Tokyo, Japan. He retrained as a rescue helicopter pilot and served a second overseas tour in Thailand, followed by a three-year tour with a NATO Air Defense Unit in Germany. He later flew helicopters at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne, Wyoming, beginning in 1979. Along the way, he earned a master's degree in European Area Studies from the University of Washington, studying as an Air Intelligence Specialist in Eastern European Affairs. He retired in 1984 after more than two decades of service.

For decades, John was a tireless advocate for the accounting of his brother, LCDR Michael L. Bouchard, who disappeared over Laos in 1968, working on behalf of the National League of Families of POW/MIA.

John was married to his wife, Joan, for 53 years. They had two daughters: Shannon, married to Evan Schechter, of Portland; and Mikell, married to John Bodner, of Raynesford, Montana. He was grandfather to Paige, Noah, Jess, Chase, and Eli Bodner, and to Noah and Chase Schechter, and is also remembered by Emily Kosokar and her son Essie. He was preceded in death by his parents and three brothers, Samuel, Pat, and Michael L. Bouchard.

John was known for his quick sense of humor, his independent nature, and his devotion to family, along with a fondness for dogs, crossword puzzles, storytelling, and a spirited game of cribbage.

John Sandford Bouchard died suddenly at home on February 11, 2019, in West Linn, Oregon, at the age of 77. Graveside services were held June 22, 2019, at St. Mary's Cemetery in Missoula, Montana.