Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 6-14-2024 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/

— 10 Mireles. Fatal [AAF] Aviation Accidents...[US]…V1: 1941–June 1943. 2006, p. 86.

–7 USAAF Lockheed A-29, off Eureka, CA.

–1 USAAF Lockheed P-38E, Ignacio, CA.

–1 USAAF North American BC-1 near Mason, TX.

–1 USAAF Boeing B-17E, near Wendover Field, UT.

Narrative Information

CA, off Eureka: USAAF Lockheed A-29

Mireles: “5-15-42A. Pacific Ocean, California. At 1215, a Lockheed A-29 was seen to dive into the Pacific Ocean at Table Bluff, near Eureka, California, killing the seven Army and Navy crewmembers on board. Aircraft spotter Mrs. Susan Kegler and A. W. Mareley, Master of the civilian owned tanker M/S Standard Service, witnessed the crash. Master Mareley stated that the A-29 circled the ship a couple of times before flying off in a westerly direction. Moments later the man saw the airplane dive into the sea. The depth charges carried aboard the A-29 detonated as the airplane sank. The crew of the tanker gathered pieces of wreckage and equipment but were not able to recover any of the bodies of the A-29 crew. Investigators could not determine why the airplane crashed….” (Mireles, Anthony J. Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945 (Volume 1: Introduction, January 1941 – June 1943). 2006, p. 86.)

May 16, Lowell Sun: “San Francisco. May 15 – (INS) – Disaster that overtook two army airplanes in northern California left eight men dead today. In a third crash, that of a bomber en route to Sacramento which plunged to earth in western Utah, four army airmen parachuted to safety. Seven of the eight victims were killed when a twin-motored bomber dived into the sea at the mouth of Eel river near Eureka. Five of the dead, including the pilot, were army personnel. The other two were attached to the navy air arm….In the other fatal crash, Second Lieut. Edward R. Cahill, 27, of Newark, N.J., was killed when the P-38 interceptor plane he was piloting struck the ground and burned three miles north of Hamilton field.” (Lowell Sun, MA. “Eight Die in Army Plane Crashes.” 5-16-1942, p. 1.)

CA, Ignacio. USAAF Lockheed P-38E

Mireles: “5-15-42C. Ignacio, California. At 1857, a Lockheed P-38E crashed at Ignacio, California, killing 2Lt. Edward E. Cahill… The airplane was attempting to land at Hamilton Field, San Rafael, California. The P-38 was seen by numerous witnesses on the ground and in the air to go into a vertical type spin to the left from an altitude of approximately 500 feet, striking the ground nose first and bursting into flames immediately upon impact. One witness reported seeing the airplane take-off and then observed it maneuver in a left wing down attitude just prior to the crash. It was later speculated that the port engine had failed.” (Mireles. Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945 (V.1: Introduction, Jan 1941 – June 1943). 2006, p. 86.)

TX, near Mason. USAAF North American BC-1

Mireles: “5-15-42D. Mason, Texas. At 2315, a North American BC-1 flew into terrain 19 miles southeast of Mason, Texas, killing A/C/ Andrew C. Smith. The BC-1 had taken off from Kelly Field, San Antonio, Texas, at 2200 on a night cross-country navigation flight to Brady, Texas, to Austin, Texas, and return to Kelly Field. The BC-1 was determined to be about 21 miles off course on the leg from Brady to Austin. Investigators could not determine why the student was off course or why the airplane crashed, speculating that he had either suffered vertigo or was looking at a map, causing him to fly the airplane into the ground. The wreckage and the pilot’s body were not found until 5-16-42.” (Mireles, Anthony J. Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945 (Volume 1: Introduction, January 1941 – June 1943). 2006, p. 86.)

May 17, San Antonio Light: “Funeral services were being arranged Saturday night for Cadet Andrew C. Smith, whose crashed plane was found Saturday afternoon 10 miles southeast of Mason. He left Kelly field on a navigation mission at 10:40 p.m. Friday and was reported missing after he reported in at Brady.” (San Antonio Sunday Light, TX. “Crash Kills Kelly Cadet.” 5-17-1942, p. 1.)

UT, near Wendover Field. USAAF Boeing B-17E

Mireles: “5-15-42B. Wendover Field, Utah. At 1430, a Boeing B-17E was abandoned in flight 10 miles northwest of Wendover Field, Wendover, Utah, killing the pilot and injuring two other crewmembers. The airplane went out of control and crashed after it encountered deteriorating weather that included strong turbulence. The B-17 went out of control three times with the pilot recovering twice. The pilot ordered the crew to bail out when he could not regain control of the airplane. Three crewmembers parachuted to safety. Pilot 1Lt. James H. Payne, East St. Louis, Illinois, was killed when he bailed out of the B-17 without his parachute. No parachute was found near the pilot’s body, which was not located until 5-31-42 about eight miles northwest of Wendover Field, Utah. The parachute was later found among the wreckage….” (Mireles. Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945 (Vol. 1: Introduction, January 1941 – June 1943). 2006, p. 86.)

May 16, Joplin News Herald: “Wendover, Utah, May 16. – (AP) – Four opened and abandoned parachutes attested today to the escape of all the crew of an army bomber which crashed and burned 10 miles north of here, last night. Only two of the men had been found this morning. Ground crews from the air base here searched for First Lieutenant James H .Payne, the pilot, and Second Lieutenant Richard H. Drake, co-pilot. Private Robert E. Johnson of New Orleans and Private Robert S. Evans of Quinnemont, W. Va., walked back to the base last night shortly after the crash.” (Joplin News Herald, MO. “2 Officers Missing After Bomber Crash.” 5-16-1942, 8.)

Sources

Joplin News Herald, MO. “2 Officers Missing After Bomber Crash.” 5-16-1942, p. 8. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=147494331&sterm

Lowell Sun, MA. “Eight Die [in CA] in Army Plane Crashes.” 5-16-1942, p. 1. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=14964297&sterm=plane+crash

Mireles, Anthony J. Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945 (Volume 1: Introduction, January 1941 – June 1943). Jefferson, NC: McFarland and Co., 2006.

San Antonio Sunday Light, TX. “Crash Kills Kelly Cadet.” 5-17-1942, p. 1. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=68964234&sterm=plane+crash

1942 – May 15, four USAAF planes crash — CA (2), ~Wendover Field, UT, ~Mason, TX–10