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| USMC MAW-1 MAG-23 VMF-212  USMC 1930s |
Pilot Lt. Col. Harold W. Bauer, O-004534 C.O. VMF-212 (MIA / KIA, BR) Woodruff, KS MIA November 14, 1942 Aircraft History Built by Grumman Corporation in Bethpage, New York as a model G-36 with manually operated folding wings. Delivered to the United States Navy (USN) as F4F-4 Wildcat bureau number 03454. Shipped overseas to the South Pacific. Wartime History Assigned to the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) to 1st Marine Aircraft Wing (1st MAW), Marine Aircraft Group 23 (MAG-23) to Marine Fighting Squadron 212 (VMF-212) "Hell Hounds / The Musketeers". No known nickname or nose art. Mission History On November 14, 1942 took off from Henderson Field on Guadalcanal piloted by Lt. Col. Harold W. Bauer on a mission against Japanese transports aproaching Guadalcanal. While making a strafing run on a transport, he was intercepted by a pair of A6M2 Zeros and claimed one shot down but was damaged by gunfire and ditched roughly 15 miles north of the Russell Islands and was spotted in the sea wearing his life vest. When this aircraft failed to return, Bauer was officially listed as Missing In Action (MIA). Search At dusk, a J2F Duck searched for the American pilots missing from the day's mission but failed to find them. Afterwards, aircraft from Guadalcanal searched for Bauer for four days without result. Memorials Bauer was officially declared dead on January 8, 1946. He earned the Medal of Honor for actions between May 10, 1942–November 14, 1942 and Purple Heart, posthumously. He is memorialized at Manila American Cemetery on the tablets of the missing. Afterwards, Port Vila Airport (Via Airfield) on Efaté Island in New Hebrides (Vanuatu) was renamed Bauer Field in honor of Lt. Col. Harold W. Bauer. Also, USS Bauer (DE-1025) launched June 7, 1957 was named in his honor. References Navy Serial Number Search Results - F4F-4 Wildcat 03454 USN Overseas Aircraft Loss List November 1942 F4F Wildcat 03454 VMF-212 Lt. Col Bauer MIA War Diary Marine Air Group 23 November 14, 1942 "...we were missing 6 SBD's and 2 F4F4's (including Lt. Col. H. W. Bauer). A special search sent out at dusk in a J2F failed to locate any missing pilots." History of Marine Corps Aviation in World War II (1952) pages 67, 70, 78, 91, 103 (VMF-212 Efate to Henderson), 116 (November 14, 1942), 119, 425 (MOH), 431 (Marine Aces: 21. Bauer 11), 433 (Squadron Commanders Killed, Bauer, 11/14/42), 479 (index) (Page 116) "Among the missing was Joe Bauer, the Cactus Air Force's highly esteemed fighter commander. He was seen in his Mae West after he was shot down, but four days of intense searching by planes and by Russell Islands natives failed to locate any further trace of him." American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Harold William Bauer FindAGrave - LTC Harold William Bauer (photo, tablets of the missing photo) Contribute Information Are you a relative or associated with any person mentioned? Do you have photos or additional information to add? Last Updated January 14, 2024 |
 Wildcat  MIA 1 Missing |
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