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| Missing In Action (MIA) | Prisoners Of War (POW) | Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) |
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| USMC MAW-1 MAG-14 VMSB-236  USMC 1943 |
Pilot 1st Lt. Earle Bunch Whiteley, O-011931 USMCR (MIA / KIA) Slaton, TX Gunner TSgt Charles A. Gotchling, Jr., 357425 USMCR (MIA / KIA) Rochester, MI MIA December 1, 1943 Aircraft History Built by Douglas Aircraft Company in El Segundo. Constructors Number 4615. Delivered to the U.S. Navy (USN) as SBD-5 Dauntless bureau number 35976. Wartime History Assigned to the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC), Marine Air Wing 1 (MAW-1), Marine Air Group 14 (MAG-14), Marine Scout Bombing Squadron 236 (VMSB-236) "Black Panthers". No known nickname, nose art or tail code. Mission History On December 1, 1943 took off from Munda Airfield piloted by 1st Lt. Earle Bunch Whiteley with gunner TSgt Charles A. Gotchling armed with bombs as one of sixteen SBD Dauntless dive bombers from VMSB-236 on bombing and strafing attack against anti-aircraft guns and installations in the vicinity of Ballale Airfield and Kara Airfield on Bougainville. The formation included a mix of U.S. Navy (USN) 48 SBD Dauntless dive bombers and 24 TBF Avengers. The formation found southern Bougainville covered in clouds and instead diverted to strike Ballale Airfield on Ballale Island. Over the target, this SBD was hit by anti-aircraft fire and crashed. When this aircraft failed it was officially listed as Missing In Action (MIA). Also lost was SBD-5 Dauntless 11002 (rescued). Fates of the Crew Other planes in the formation observed three in the water 2 to 3 miles southwest of Ballale Island. One person [likely a one of the crew from this plane] was observed to land on the runway of Ballale Airfield. If any of the crew was captured and became a Prisoner Of War (POW), they but did not survive captivity and either died or were executed. Memorials Both crew were officially declared dead on January 11, 1946. Both earned the Purple Heart, posthumously. Both are memorialized at Manila American Cemetery on the tablets of the missing. References Other sources list the mission as a dive bombing strike against Chabai on Bougainville. Navy Serial Number Search Results - SBD-5 Dauntless 35976 USN Overseas Aircraft Loss List December 1943 - SBD-5 Dauntless 35976 NARA USMC VMSB-236 War Diary December 1943 page 2 (Page 2) "1 December [1943] Operations - Sixteen pilots of the forward flight echelon participated in a dive bombing and strafing attack on Jap AA guns and installations in the vicinity of Ballale and Kara Airfields. Details are contained in attached copy of the mission report. Major E.P. Paris, Jr., USMC, and First Lieutenant Earl R. Whiteley were shot down by AA fire while diving on AA positions on Ballale Island. Major Paris and his gunner T/Sgt Alden E. Christiansen, and Lt. Whiteley [a]nd his gunner, T/Sgt. Charles A. Gotchling, were observed to bail out. Three persons were observed in the water 2 to 3 miles SW of Ballale. One person was observed to land on the runway on Ballale." NARA World War II Prisoners of War Data File does not list either crew member as official POWs of Japan, this is not uncommon for POWs captured in forward areas that were often detained, interrogated then executed. American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Earle Bunch Whiteley FindAGrave - 1LT Earle Bunch Whiteley (tablets of the missing) American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Charles A. Gotchling Jr. FindAGrave - TSgt Charles Arthur Gotchling Jr. (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 April 19, 2021 |
 SBD MIA 2 Missing |
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