Jesse D. Auton was born on December 1, 1904, at Covington, Kentucky, to Robert Wesley and Julia E. [Bagby] Auton. However, he was raised a few minutes to the south in Piner.[3] There, he was the valedictorian of the 1923 graduating class of Piner High School.[4] He then attended Georgetown College, completing a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1927.[5]
Early career
Auton enlisted in the U.S. Army as an aviation cadet at Kentucky in 1928. After completing flight training, he was commissioned as second lieutenant in the Air Reserve in October 1929. Auton was subsequently commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Regular Army Air Corps in January 1930.[5]
After the American entry into the Second World War, Auton's group was initially assigned to mainland defense and he was promoted to lieutenant colonel in January 1942. In August 1942, he was promoted to colonel and his group was redesignated the 20th Fighter Group. In January 1943, Auton became commander of the San Francisco Air Defense Wing. In April 1943, he became executive officer and acting commander of the Fourth Air Defense Wing.[5]
Brigadier General Jesse Auton, General Eisenhower, General Spaatz, General Doolittle, Major General William Kepner and Colonel Blakeslee.
The Fourth Air Defense Wing was transferred to the European Theatre of Operations in May 1943 and subsequently redesignated the 65th Fighter Wing. Auton became the wing commander in August 1943.[5] During the conflict he flew 12 combat missions.[3]
Auton served as a temporary brigadier general from March 1944 to January 1946 before reverting to the rank of colonel.[5]
Auton was killed on March 30, 1952, in a plane crash at Offutt Air Force Base, Omaha.[3] He was the pilot of a twin-engine bomber returning to the base from California. An aide was also killed, but his co-pilot and two other crew members survived the crash. The plane was attempting to land after one of its two engines had failed.[6][8] Auton was buried on April 7, 1952, at Arlington National Cemetery.[3][9]
