Tradewinds Airport • 4107 Tradewind Street • Amarillo, Texas 79118 • Office (806)335-9763

The legend behind our name...

Coyote Flight Centers was inspired by a legendary pilot from Texas. A veteran named John Crump, callsign "Wild Bill", and his pet coyote “Jeep” flew aerial combat missions during World War II.

John Crump was born on July 2nd, 1924 in Opportunity, WA. John was a young boy when he took his first flight lesson in a small, single-engine Taylorcraft.

When World War II began, John graduated high school early and enlisted in the Army Air Corp. His first assignment was Harlingen Aerial Gunnery School in Harlingen, Texas. Upon completion of gunnery school, John was then accepted into flight school as an aviation cadet. He began primary flight training at Moore Army Air Base in Mission, TX and then moved on to fly the P-47 Thunderbolt.

During his flight training, John was given a two week old coyote pup from a local farmer who wanted the pup destroyed. John kept the pup and named him “Jeep” after Popeye’s famous pet.

When John was deployed to the 360th Fighter Squadron (now the 356th fighter group), he took Jeep with him. Smuggling him aboard the RMS Queen Elizabeth in an empty gas mask case, John and Jeep traveled to England where they were stationed at Martlesham Heath Airfield. Jeep was given his own dog tags, a pilot’s logbook, and immunization records.

Jeep became the squadron mascot. During missions, Jeep would lay down under John’s legs on the floor of the cockpit. He became the only dog in the world to have actually flown combat missions.

Unfortunately Jeep did not make it home from the war. He died in an accident on Oct 28th, 1944 and was buried with full military honors including four airplanes passing over head in the missing man formation. His gravesite is still maintained on the grounds of Playford Hall located in England.

John however went on to fly the P-40 Warhawk and the P-51 Mustang. His later aircraft sported a painting of Jeep so that they could be “together” during combat. During the war, John distinguished himself as a fighter pilot and even successfully managed a sea rescue.

John flew his last mission in 1945 before returning safely to his home in Edmonds, WA. There he became a flight instructor and private charter pilot. He obtained additional ratings in multi-engine aircraft, seaplanes, gliders, helicopters, and jets.

In 1948, he re-enlisted and flew a DC-4 in the infamous Berlin Airlift. After being promoted to Major, he was assigned a spot flying the C-124 Globemaster.

John remained in aviation throughout the rest of his life. He would go on to fly in airshows, meet famous people like Bob Hope, and even win the General Douglas MacArthur Award for his contributions to his community. He even carried the Olympic torch for half a mile on its journey to Atlanta for the 1996 Olympic games.

In 1996 he was honored by the King and Queen of Sweden for a calssified mission he flew during World War II. The mission had been to ferry a number of unarmed P-51 mustangs to Sweden in case the war in Europe continued to persist.

John’s fuel tanks ran dry on February 8th, 2008. Due to the ridge along the back of the P-47D, the “D” version of the Thunderbolt was often nicknamed the “Razorback”. The ridge was removed from later models of the P-47 which were given a bubble style canopy to facilitate a better view from the cockpit for dog fighting.