"…with a wink from the president of the United States [I realized] that I had been in the midst of the small talk of the leaders of the United States of America. I was a long way from that Alabama cotton patch."—James U. Cross, Around the World With LBJ
It’s difficult to envision the cotton patches and steel mills of depression-era Alabama as fertile ground for anything more than these former staples of the state’s economy. Yet these humble surroundings would produce two young men whose journeys in life would converge on the flight deck of the world’s most recognizable airplane during one of the most extraordinary periods in American history.
Growing up in the Birmingham suburb of Tarrant, James B. Swindal could easily have spent his life working in the nearby steel mills. But in 1942, following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, he joined the Army Air Corps. Selected for training as a military aviator, Swindal became a pilot of multiengine transport aircraft. He was assigned to fly supply missions over the Himalayan Mountains in the China-Burma-India Theater of Operations. Known as "The Hump" by flight crews, the Himalayas stood higher than any mountain chain in the world. Flying over "The Hump" proved to be as deadly a task as aerial combat—so many airplanes and crews were lost along the route, in fact, that it soon became known as "the aluminum trail." During his tour of duty, Swindal completed 85 missions through this perilous gauntlet.
After the war, Swindal would again pilot supply aircraft to those in need. During the Berlin Airlift, he and his fellow airmen transported more than two million tons of food and supplies to the people of Germany’s divided capital city. Ironically, Swindal would return to Berlin in June 1963 as the pilot of Special Air Mission aircraft 26000—the heavily modified Boeing 707 commonly known as "Air Force One." In Berlin, Swindal’s passenger on this mission, President John F. Kennedy, would proclaim "Ich bin ein Berliner" (I am a Berliner) to the thousands of West Berlin residents gathered to hear the speech.
Swindal continued to serve as the presidential pilot for Kennedy until November 22, 1963. On that fateful day, Swindal had transported President Kennedy aboard Air Force One to Love Field in Dallas, Texas. As the motorcade transported Kennedy through downtown Dallas, Swindal remained in the cockpit to monitor the Secret Service radio frequency. At 12:30 p.m., he heard agent Roy Kellerman exclaim, "Lancer (codename for the President) is hurt. It looks bad. We have to get to a hospital."
Swindal immediately prepared Air Force One for the return flight to Washington. Because of the lack of credible information in the aftermath of the assassination, Air Force One was fueled to its maximum capacity in the event Kennedy’s assault was part of a broader attack on the United States. When the casket containing Kennedy’s body was placed aboard Air Force One, Swindal interrupted his preflight preparations to make his way to the aircraft’s aft portion to offer a final salute to his commander in chief.
Meanwhile, in a scene that would reach millions of people through the pages of Life magazine, Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as the 36th president of the United States right in the cabin of Air Force One. When Swindal received the order to take off, SAM 26000 was cleared to Washington "…by any route, any altitude." During the return flight, Swindal recalled that he "…felt that the world had ended. It became a struggle to continue."
In Washington, vice presidential pilot Lt. Col. James Cross had been summoned to Andrews Air Force Base in response to a Red Alert activating the nation’s military forces after the assassination of the president. A native of Covington County Alabama, Cross had also begun his military aviation career as a pilot in the China-Burma-India Theater. In 1962, Johnson chose him to pilot the Lockheed Jet Star used to transport the vice president.
After becoming president, Johnson directed Cross to "get qualified in that big jet." In the meantime, Cross would be the understudy of Swindal aboard Air Force One until he was qualified to take command. And so it came to pass that two Alabama natives would serve side by side in the cockpit of the world’s most recognizable airplane as it transported one of the world’s most important passengers.
During his tenure as pilot of Air Force One, Cross also served a supporting role as President Johnson’s personal military aid. In this capacity, Cross was responsible for multiple tasks, which included directing the White House Military Office and supervising the presidential retreat at Camp David. In his recently published book, Around the World With LBJ, Cross recalls President Johnson "…calling for Air Force One as others summon a taxi—at a moment’s notice, whatever the hour or the weather." One of his most memorable flights was a record-setting, four-and-a-half-day trip around the world that included a visit to American troops in Vietnam.
Following his tour of duty with Special Air Missions, Cross was promoted to the rank of brigadier general and served as commanding officer of Bergstrom Air Force Base in Austin, Texas. Cross retired from the Air Force in 1971 after 28 years of military service. His mentor aboard Air Force One, Swindal, retired the same year with 29 years of service. Upon his death in 2006, Swindal was laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors.
These two men rose above their meager surroundings to devote their lives to serving their country. Ironically, their paths met in the cockpit of the "flying White House" as members of one of the world’s most elite aviator groups. In life and service, Cross and Swindal exemplified the core values of Special Air Missions, "Integrity first, service before self and excellence in all we do."
