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Service Details |
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Personal Details
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Home State
Massachusetts | |
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Year of Birth
1929 |
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This Military Service Page was created/owned by
Sgt. S. Kimbrow -Historian
to remember
Eaton, Ronald Dow, ENS.
If you knew or served with this Sailor and have additional information or photos to support this Page, please leave a message for the Page Administrator(s) HERE.
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Casualty Info
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Home Town
Wilmington |
Last Address
Wilmington
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Casualty Date
Jun 25, 1952 |
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Cause
Hostile, Died while Missing |
Reason
Air Loss, Crash - Land |
Location
Korea, North |
Conflict
Korean War |
Location of Interment
Not Specified |
Wall/Plot Coordinates
Not Specified |
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Last Known Activity
See Notes
Ens. Eaton enlisted in the Navy while in his senior year of highschool in 1947. After high school, he attended Acadia University in Nova Scotia, graduating in 1951. He then attended Navy pilot training.
In 1952, Ensign Eaton was the pilot of an F4U-4 Corsair fighter (#81002) with Fighter Squadron 74 aboard the aircraft carrier USS Bon Homme Richard (CV-31). On 25 June 1952, he was attacking a target in the Wonsan area of North Korea, when his aircraft was hit by flak at an altitude of 8,000 feet and he bailed out.
He was successfully picked up by a H-5H helicopter (# 49-2000) piloted by Captain Leslie W. Lear from the 3rd Rescue Squadron, Military Air Transport Service, U.S. Air Force. Shortly thereafter, Captain Lear's aircraft was hit by enemy fire and crashed ten miles south of Chongsong-ni Korea. . .
Ens. Eaton jumped from the helicopter, holding onto rescueman A1C Bob Holloway who wore the only chute. Ens. Eaton was unable to hold on and fell to his death when the chute opened. . . Although Holloway was taken as a POW, the fate of both Lear and Eaton is not known and their remains were not recovered.
(Above information can be found on the Air Force TWS site, under Captain Leslie Wayne Lear )
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Comments/Citation
Notes/Links:
http://www.koreanwar.org/html/korean_war_project_remembrance.html (includes details, medals, memorial searches, etc.) Etc: from Air Force TWS profile of Lear
http://www.koreanwar.org/html/korean_war_project_remembrance.html (includes awards and further info)
http://www.rotorheadsrus.us/documents/331.html (for above article)
http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo/korea/reports/air/korwald_info_1929.htm http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA440090&Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf
(Entitled: Forrest L. Marion, That Others May Live: USAF Air Rescue Service in Korea, Air Force Historical Studies Office, Washington, D.C., 2004, page 14.)
http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo/pmkor/korwald_info_446.htm
http://mysite.verizon.net/swanstid/f3rd.html (history of the 3rd ARS)
http://www.militarytimes.com/citations-medals-awards/recipient.php?recipientid=25203
Best resources for this incident can be found at: http://www.belleairepress.com/index.php?id=15
http://www.baitedtrapambush.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=151 (photo)
http://www.baitedtrapambush.com/ (book about rescue by Retired Navy Captain Tracy Connors)
www.truckbustersfromdogpatch.com (story of the rescue attempt)
http://www.aiipowmia.com/inter28/in060906heroesbehind.html
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