About john "Bag" Hefti
Captain John "Bag" Hefti, USN (ret.)
John “Bag” Hefti passed away the evening of Monday, October 4, 2021 in a car accident. His death is a devastating loss to his wife, Patricia (Creamer) Hefti, and sons Jay, Adam, and Shane.
John loved life. Family was the most important thing to John, and he relished time with his wife and sons whether it was boating, throwing the football and baseball, going to the beach, or just watching sunsets. He was a great impersonator and known for his quick wit. He loved and adored his wife “Trishy” and never forgot where they first met or the day he asked for her hand in marriage. His family and friends remember John as the guy who enjoyed grilling and loved having backyard bonfires and breaking out the karaoke machine. He was the most humble man and never boasted about his accomplishments.
John spent his formative years in various locations throughout the country, finally settling for a longer period in Woodbridge, Virginia, where he graduated from Woodbridge High School in 1981. A gifted athlete, John excelled in all sports during his childhood, and was a three-sport athlete in high school, playing quarterback on the football teams, pitcher and shortstop on the baseball teams, and point guard on the basketball team. He was named All-Conference Quarterback his senior season and was a member of the Varsity club. He was also a member of the National Honor Society and played trumpet in the school band. He was a natural leader on and off the field and used his leadership positions to train, care, and advocate for others.
John was heavily recruited by such college football teams as the United States Military Academy (West Point) and Virginia Military Institute (VMI), but chose the United States Naval Academy (USNA). He played quarterback on the Junior Varsity football team his freshman year. John graduated from the Naval Academy in May of 1985 with an Engineering degree, and was selected to become a Naval Aviator, beginning training at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida.
John Hefti, “Bag” as he came to be known, was designated a Naval Aviator in March 1987 in Beeville, TX and became a selectively retained graduate flight instructor until 1989. He completed F-14 Replacement Air Group training with Fighter Squadron ONE ZERO ONE (VF-101), the Grim Reapers, at NAS Oceana, Virginia. Bag’s operational sea assignments include Fighter Squadron FOUR ONE (VF-41), the Black Aces, where he graduated from TOPGUN, served as air wing landing signal officer (LSO), and deployed in support of Operation Desert Storm. In Fighter Squadron ONE ZERO THREE (VF-103), the Jolly Rogers, he was maintenance officer and deployed in support of Operations Deliberate Forge and Southern Watch. John’s first command tour was as the commanding officer, Fighter Squadron TWO ONE THREE (VF-213), the Black Lions, where he deployed in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom immediately following the attacks of September 11th, 2001. His next command was Commander, Tactical Support Wing, the Navy’s reserve air wing based in Ft. Worth, TX. There he commanded six squadrons, six squadron augment units (SAU), and three fleet maintenance centers with a wide range of missions, from flying adversary support to counter-illicit trafficking and electronic attack. Bag’s shore assignments included two tours in VF-101 as a flight instructor, training officer and operations officer. He was also the readiness officer for Fighter Wing Atlantic and Aide to the Commander, U.S. Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) and North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). He also served as the Navy’s first diversity officer for the Chief of Naval Personnel and Deputy Chief of Staff, Fleet/Joint Training at U.S. Fleet Forces Command (USFF). He held a master's degree in National Security Strategy from the National War College.
Retiring from active duty in 2013, John worked as a client manager and performance improvement coach for the oil and gas industry for three years. In this capacity, he was an executive and workforce level coach on leadership, organizational change, communication, safety / risk management and process improvement for Exxon, Chevron, Shell, Conoco, and BP. John returned to government service in 2016 as the Aviation Program Manager in the Resources and Readiness Division for USFF. Prior to his death he continued to serve at USFF as the Executive Director of Training.
Outside of work, John loved coaching children in baseball and basketball. He coached baseball for six years for the Great Neck Baseball League and three years for the Upward Basketball League. He loved working with children and the children absolutely loved being coached by “Coach Hefti”. He was recognized as being exceedingly patient and one who never wanted to be in the dugout or on the bench. Coach Hefti instead insisted on always being on the field or court to provide instruction, development of skills and to build on players’ confidence. He was known throughout the coaching community as a fun and inspirational leader and coach.