Atlantic Ocean – May 29, 1944
Updated March 5, 2019
Updated May 4, 2025
U.S. Navy Grumman Avenger
U.S. Navy Photo
On May 2, 1944, a TBM Avenger with a crew of three aboard was on a bomb training flight over Vineyard Sound, Massachusetts when a wing suddenly folded and the plane crashed into the sea killing all aboard.
The pilot: Lieut. (Jg. )William Hinson Gallagher, 22, of Charlotte, North Carolina, was killed. He’s buried in Elmwood Cemetery in Charlotte, in plot DX-121.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/93301867/william-hinson-gallagher
AMM2/C Kenneth Eiler, Jr., (20) of Pottsville, Penn.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/247181136/kenneth-eiler
ARM3/C Anthony F. Spaminato, (No further info.)
Sources:
Rhode Island Department Of Health Death Records.
Find A Grave website www.findagrave.com
The Wilmington Morning Star, (Del.), “Charlotte Flier Dies In Rhode Island Crash”, May 13, 1944.
Northern Air Group A.C.I Aircraft Accident And Crash Report, (1st Naval District), dated June 1, 1944, covering naval crashes for the month of May, 1944.
