Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island – December 18, 1944
U.S. Navy F6F Hellcat
U.S. Navy photo
In the early morning hours of December 18, 1944, Ensign Robert I. Lane, piloting an F6F-3N Hellcat, (Bu. No. 42570), took off from Quonset Point Naval Air Station for night carrier landing practice on Quonset’s runways. At 4:30 a.m., he contacted Quonset tower and advised he was over Narragansett Bay and approaching the runway. This was the last heard from him. His aircraft crashed into the water, but the accident was not witnessed. A search was conducted, but nothing was found and he was declared missing. A handwritten notation in the navy accident report states he was “found later in water 5 mi. SW of Quonset”.
Source: U. S. Navy Accident Report dated December 18, 1944
