John Arling Morrison

John Arling Morrison died peacefully in his sleep at 3:10am October 6th, 2020, surrounded by his family. He was born January 31st, 1930 to Pauline Virginia Erwin and Robert Weldon Morrison in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was the second of five children and is reunited with two sisters Wanda and Geraldine and his younger brother Roger. He is survived by his only remaining sibling, his youngest sister, Marilyn. He is also survived by his eternal companion, Norma Adams Morrison, and four of his seven children. Patricia Shannon Bates, Ruth Anna Wilde, Robert Weldon Morrison and Jay Arling Morrison. In addition to his parents and most of his siblings, he is reunited with his first born child, Gaye Lynn Czarnecki, and infant twin sons, Alma and Aaron. He had a more than stellar aviation career. He had an interest in airplanes early in life. He started in the newly organized US Air Force and in 1952 attended Primary Flight Training school at Spence AFB in Georgia. He entered the Korean War in 1954 in the 67th Fighter Bomber Squadron. After the war he continued in the Air Force and he was admitted into the National Aerospace Flight Training School at Edwards AFB to become an astronaut, all while serving as a branch president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In 1965, he resigned from the space program before becoming an astronaut because he realized the risk and time commitment would take him away from his family and serving in the church, both of which he loved dearly. He moved his family to Broomfield, Colorado and took a job with United Airlines and contracted with NASA as the test pilot of the first computerized flight controlled airplane. He retired from United Airlines in 1990 as a captain. He loved his family, his church, aviation and golf. In that order. In lieu of flowers please donate to the Multiple Sclerosis Association. https://mymsaa.org/