John McCain, a proud naval aviator who survived years as a prisoner of war in Vietnam and going on to become a Republican congressman, senator from Arizona and a two-time contender for the presidency, has died after a battle with a malignant brain tumour. He was 81. McCain died on Saturday at 4.28 p.m. at his ranch near Sedona, Arizona, his office announced in a statement on Sunday. The son and grandson of Navy admirals, he was born on August 29, 1936, in the Panama Canal Zone.

He was diagnosed last year with a tumour, called a glioblastoma, for which he had been treated periodically with radiation and chemotherapy since its discovery in 2017. His family had announced earlier this week that he was discontinuing medical treatment. During three decades of representing Arizona in the Senate, he ran twice unsuccessfully for president, reports The Washington Post.