Chane Howard
1940 ~ 2023
Captain Chane C. Howard, age 83, passed June 29th, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Chane was born on April 6, 1940 in Idaho. His father was US Army Colonel Ward C. Howard of Washington. His mother was Martha K. Howard of Idaho.
Chane graduated from high school in Joliet, Illinois. It was during high school that Chane met his future wife, Judith “Judy” Hord. Straight out of High School Chane went to Washington D.C.'s Sullivan School, a military academy and college prep school and then attended Penn State University. Like many of his Northwest Airlines (NWA) colleagues, Chane opted to enter the Naval Aviation Cadet Program (NAVCAD) at NAS Pensacola Florida. His initial military and basic flight training were completed at NAS Pensacola, but his specific jet and multiengine flight training followed at NAS Meridian Mississippi, and NAS Corpus Christi, Texas. Chane was awarded his wings and gold bars at NAS Corpus Christi.
In February. 1963 Chane married his wife Judith. They were married in Meridian, Mississippi and honeymooned in New Orleans, during Mardi Gras, followed by a traditional wedding back in Illinois with family and friends in December.
Returning to USN duty, Chane was assigned to Patrol Squadron VP-9 at NAS Alameda, California where he flew copilot on the P2V-7. In December 1963 the squadron transferred to NAS Moffett Field, CA and the aircrews began transition to the Lockheed P-3A.
On 12 Nov 1964 VP-9 was deployed to the Western Pacific (WestPac) based at Naha, Okinawa, patrolling the Formosan Straits, South China Sea, Yellow Sea, and the Philippine Sea. During this time, VP-9 crews also flew missions in support of Seventh Fleet units off Vietnam. This deployment marked the first operational use of the P-3A in WestPac. Chane rotated back to Moffett Field and eventually returned to WestPac operations on later cruises.
Chane loved to fly and continued to do so. After his release from the active Navy he sought employment with Northwest Airlines and was hired in June 1967. His first crew assignment was second officer on the Boeing 727. Most of his career at NWA he was flying out of the Minneapolis/St. Paul (MSP) or Detroit (DTW) bases, he commuted for several years from Seattle (SEA). Chane flew for NWA for 33 years. At the time of his retirement in 2000, Chane was holding a captain slot at DTW on the Boeing 747/400.
Chane and his wife Judy both pursued their career dreams, Judy achieving her Bachelor of Science in nursing at Northwestern University and Chane becoming a Navy and commercial pilot all the while building their love for each other. Raising their two children together became their passion adding to their already active and adventurous lives. Chane and Judy enjoyed over 60 years of a marriage full of love, laughter, and mutual respect.
Chane was a kind, loving and giving husband, father, grandfather, and friend. He was always putting others before himself. He led a full and creative life enjoying tennis, hockey, skiing, scuba diving, playing golf and traveling the world with his family well into his 80’s. He was always curious and learning new things. Chane loved animals and appreciated the beauty of nature, surrounding himself in it whenever possible. What many people didn’t know about Chane was that he was a skillful artist, and carved lovely sculptures out of soap stone.
Chane is survived by his loving wife Judith D. Howard, his two children, Trast C. Howard and Kendyll D. Howard, his daughter-in-law Keiko Yanagida Howard, and his granddaughter Kiri D. Howard.
With deep affection and respect.
(~ Kendyll D. Howard & Bill Day)