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Captain John Yossarian is the protagonist of the 1961 novel Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. He is a captain in the 256th squadron of the Army Air Corps (which later became the US Air Force). The character is based on Joseph Heller himself; both were bombardiers in the Air Corps during World War II, both were stationed on islands off the coast of Italy, and both lost crew members when their plane was attacked on their 37th flight to bomb the city of Avignon.
Yossarian is also the protagonist of Catch-22's sequel, Closing Time, published in 1994. Although Heller describes his roots as being "Assyrian", his name indicates an Armenian background.
Yossarian's main concern in life is that people are trying to kill him, a justifiable qualm considering he is fighting a war. Because of this, Yossarian tries repeatedly to get grounded. His primary method is to feign either illness or insanity. He can feign illness easily because he claims to have a liver condition, something doctors cannot easily help him with. As such, he spends much time in the hospital, out of the war. The barrier that blocks him from getting grounded and sent home is a rule known as Catch-22.
As the plane's bombardier, he is known for directing his pilot to fly with wild banking, climbing and diving manouvers to avoid enemy fire.
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