John Sullivan was born in 1917 and grew up in Kenosha, Wisconsin. He developed an interest in
aviation when he was a young child. He started flight instruction in 1937 and flew
on anti-submarine patrol for the U.S. Navy while stationed in Greenland. After leaving
the military in 1945, Sullivan worked at the Kenosha Airport until 1950 and then
assumed management of the Racine Airport until 1983.