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| USMC MAW-1 MAG-11 VMF-218 "Hellions" Former Assignment VMF-214 "Black Sheep"   Jack Morris 1991  Justin Taylan 2000    Phil Bradley 2001 |
Pilot 2nd Lt. Jack
G. Morris, O-25665 (survived) Ridgefield, WA Crashed February 10, 1944 Aircraft History Built by Vought. Delivered to the U.S. Navy (USN) as F4U-1 Corsair bureau number 02566. Fuselage code 566 (last three digits of the bureau number). Disassembled and shipped overseas to the South Pacific (SOPAC) and reassembled. Wartime History Assigned to the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC), Marine Air Wing 1 (MAW-1), Marine Air Group 11 (MAG-11), Marine Fighting Squadron 214 (VMF-214) "Black Sheep". No known nickname, nose art or squadron number. This Corsair is only known to have flown one combat mission with the squadron. On December 23, 1943 at 12:30pm took off piloted by 1st Lt. Edwin A. Harper on a fighter sweep over Rabaul and retured safely at 2:00pm. Afterwards, transfered to Marine Fighting Squadron 218 (VMF-218) "Hellions". No known nose art or nickname. Assigned to pilot 2nd Lt. Jack G. Morris. Jack G. Morris adds: "On the way to combat zone on January 31 I flew an old rehab with birdcage canopy on ferry hop 600 miles from Espiritu Santo to Guadalcanal, gladly left it in the fighter pool at Henderson. It backfired whenever I throttled back, made me nervous. Its was F4U Corsair 02566." Mission History On February 10, 1944 took off Piva Uncle (Piva North Airfield) on Bougainville piloted by 2nd Lt. Jack G. Morris on a mission to escort B-25 Mitchells on a bombing mission against Vunakanau Airfield near Rabaul along with other escorting USN, USAAF and Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) P-40N Kittyhawks. Over the target, Morris' was flying "Tail end Charlie" at the rear of the formation when he was shot down by an A6M Zero and wounded above his eye and momentarily passed out. Just before crashing, he awoke and to bail out before his Corsair crashed into the ground. Fate of the Pilot Morris landed safely in the jungle and spent the next eight days behind enemy lines, following a river towards the sea. When he reached the coast, he deployed his life raft and was spotted in the open sea. Rescue On February 18, 1944 rescued by Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) Catalina NZ4013 piloted by by Fg Off McGrane and returned to duty. Wreckage During 1990, this crash site was located by David Lindley east the Warangoi River. Later, Brian Bennett identified the wreckage as F4U Corsair 02566. In December 1990, the wreckage was recovered from the crash site and transported to the Kokopo War Museum. The wreckage is displayed outdoors with nothing removed, restored or changed including .50 caliber ammunition and twisted metal that makes it an interesting presentation of a World War II relic. Brian Bennett adds: "There was a line of wreckage: two pieces part of the tail and part of the outer wing panel. He must have touched the jungle on his way down, and the plane had impacted the jungle once before it crashed further up the hill. Morris said his canopy was covered in oil as he was coming in. I surmise he was probably upside down when he bailed out, and the aircraft crashed. He was seconds between life and death." During 1991, former pilot Jack G. Morris visited the Kokopo War Museum and saw the wreckage of his Corsair on display. References Navy Serial Number Search Results - F4U-1 Corsair 02566 USN Overseas Aircraft Loss List February 1944 - F4U-1 Corsair 02566 NARA "VMF-214 War Diary Decemver 1943" pages 21-22 Bruce Gamble adds: "According to Major Henry Miller (flight officer during VMF-214 Black Sheep's second tour) records, and 02566 was flown on one day by Ed Harper. It was flown on a fighter sweep over Rabaul on December 23, 1943 and returned to base. That was the only time the plane was in the VMF-214 rotation during that tour, from the records." One Angel Left (2001) by Jack Morris memoirs about his wartime experiences and this crash RNZAF 6 Squadron Diary - February 18, 1944 "On the same day a fighter pilot who had been shot down 8 days previously was rescued from open sea by Fg Off McGrane and crew". Thanks to Jack G. Morris for additional information Contribute Information Are you a relative or associated with any person mentioned? Do you have photos or additional information to add? Last Updated June 30, 2024 |
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