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<p><em>Henry Lewis “Lew” Meloan</em> had the distinction of serving in sea, land, and air services. Lew started his military career as a cadet at the Coast Guard Academy, where he sailed as a member of the Coast Guard cadet crew on the Coast Guard sailing ship Eagle to Europe. After a year Lew secured an appointment to West Point, entering with the Class of 1959. Found deficient in the French language after plebe year, Lew was turned back to the Class of 1960, joining his old company, D-1, in January 1957. The event remains mysterious, as Lew was academically curious and gifted. The ultimate irony is that Lew became fluent in French and was able to spend a significant amount of time enjoying what France had to offer later in life. Lew was an active member of the Cadet Glee Club and satisfied his wanderlust through Glee Club trips. </p>
<p>Lew mastered the art of military space-available travel, traveling to Europe during three Christmas leaves and two summer leaves. Lew, with his major possession, a Webcor high fidelity phonograph, introduced his roommates to a wide range of classical music and successfully introduced the card game of bridge to a number of roommates. The Fourth Class System as experienced in Company D-1 was particularly harsh, with an abundance of negative leadership. Lew’s plebe year as a Coast Guard cadet and his year as a West Point plebe and then half a year as a turned back, recognized plebe showcased the defaults in the leadership system and pointed Lew toward more positive leadership, which he practiced throughout his life.</p>
<p>Upon the opening of the Air Force Academy, the entry of USMA cadets into the Air Force flying positions was seriously reduced. In previous years, cadets were able to select their Army branch or military service in order of academic merit, with total numbers in all selection areas being limited. Lew was academically in the upper third of the class, but under the new rules he was not high enough to guarantee that one of the limited Air Force pilot training positions would be available. As a result, when the Class of 1960 selected their Army branch or military service in December 1959, Lew selected an Air Force non-aviator position. </p>
<p>Assigned to ballistic missile training and to an Air Force ballistic missile unit, quickly and deftly, Lew found himself selected for pilot training, satisfying a lifelong goal. Lew flew C-130s, with his first assignment being in Evreux, France. From there Lew flew not only in Europe, but where need existed.</p>
<p>Piloting low-level flights across central Turkey to India, where he ferried Indian Army troops to the India-China frontier during the 1962 Sino-Indian border conflict, Lew reveled in the job and flying experience. Lew was able to foray out of France in his new Mercedes to visit classmates and other acquaintances in Europe. He even visited Grafenwohr, a major training area in Germany, where U.S. Army units at the time spent six week periods in intensive weapons and maneuver training. After observing the relatively primitive living conditions of the younger officers—sleeping bags and canvass cots and fairly basic latrine facilities—Lew was appreciative of his career choice. Flying C-130s out of Columbus, OH after Evreux, after two years Captain Meloan saw brighter horizons in the civilian airline industry. </p>
<p>Lew later confided to his wife, Mary Ellen, that the military years were among the happiest in his life. Lew became a pilot for Pan American airlines, first as a flight engineer in a Boeing 727 and finally becoming a Boeing 747 captain. In another bit of irony concerning Lew’s earlier conflict with the French language, as a 747 captain flying back and forth to Paris, Lew provided his captive audience with an excellent travelogue concerning their destination in both English and fluent French. The Lockerbie bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 in 1988, Pan Am’s lack of domestic routes, rising fuel costs and management issues ended Pan Am as a company and, with it, Lew’s flying career with Pan Am. The assumption of a significant pension vanished with the realities of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, the benefits available not being close to the assumed full pension benefits. Nevertheless, Lew persevered, flying former Pan Am 747s in charters across Africa and carrying Muslim pilgrims on the Hajj to Saudi Arabia, and becoming a 747 flight instructor with the Pan Am International Flight Academy in Miami. </p>
<p>Hurricane Andrew in 1992 extensively damaged Lew’s home, eventually leading to a decision to pull up stakes and move to Chattanooga, TN. Mary Ellen and Lew continued to enjoy overseas travel, including to China. In Chattanooga, Lew satisfied his love of numbers by doing tax work for H&R Block. Lew also continued his lifelong support and participation in good music. One great joy was singing the Faure Requiem in France in 1995. Lew was involved with numerous music events in Chattanooga during his years there and was a communicant of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, particularly enjoying the church music. </p>
<p>Lew is survived by his loving wife, Mary Ellen, who cared for him through a number of years of severe illnesses. He is also survived by a son, Michael; a daughter, Katherine Sexton; three stepchildren: Audrey Huff, Lynn, and Wayne Johnson; and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren, many of whom were present to comfort him during his final days. True to form, Lew comforted them instead. Lew’s final resting place is in the mausoleum at the Chattanooga National Cemetery. </p>
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