Globemaster Crash, June 1953 (Tachikawa, Japan)

This page was last updated: February 19, 2007

This page of the Korean War Educator is dedicated to
Robert Bushong and the other 128 victims of this deadly crash.

They are not forgotten.

Page Contents:

• Brief Details
• Miscellaneous published accounts
  • Life Magazine article - June 29, 1953
  • Global Security.org
• Remembrances
  • Steve Troutman - in remembrance of Robert Bushong
  • Herman Cupp - in remembrance of the 802nd Engineers
  • Bushong Family - in remembrance of Robert Bushong
  • Donald Donat - in remembrance of the victims
  • Bernard Large Jr. - in remembrance of a West Pointer
  • Jim Escalle - in remembrance of Jimmy Escalle
  • Marcia Ovrebro - in remembrance of Sherman Canney
  • Kimberly Reed - in remembrance of Warren R. Pool
  • Ray Gamma - in remembrance of Narcisco Gutierrez Jr.
• Passenger List
• Photo Gallery

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Brief Details

• The pilot was Herbert G. Voruz Jr.
• Tail number of the plane was 51-137A.
• The plane was from the 374th Troop Carrier Wing.

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Miscellaneous Published Accounts

Life Magazine - June 29, 1953, p. 48

The regular Life magazine feature "Life on the Newsfronts of the World" carried the following mention of this Globemaster crash:

Worst Air Crash

One rain-filled afternoon last week a giant Air Force C-124 Globemaster lifted off the runway at Tachikawa airport near Tokyo and disappeared into the murk.  The tower heard one brief radio message from the plane: "One engine dead; returning for G.C.A. landing."  A few minutes later, in a flat spin, the C-124 crashed into a muddy farm field northeast of the airport.  There were no survivors: the plane carried to death 129 persons, seven members of the crew and 122 servicemen returning to their units in Korea after leave in Japan.  It was--by a margin of 42 deaths--the world's worst disaster in the history of aviation.

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Global Security.Org

The C-124 had a variety of problems associated with its anti-icing equipment, autopilot, brakes, and instrument visibility.  Until WADC engineers could devise a solution to ice formation, pilots were simply told to avoid icy conditions.  At the end of 1952, all C-124s of the 22nd Troop Carrier Squadron were grounded because of fuel tank leaks.  Early in February, after fuel cell modifications, the big planes returned to the skies.  In July 1953, a number of C-124s were grounded again pending inspection of their engines after a number of engine fires.  On 18 June 1953, the worst air disaster up tot hat time occurred at Tachikawa Air Base in Japan when an engine fire caused the crash of a C-124 shortly after takeoff, killing all 129 passengers aboard.  Some of the planes were returned to service the following month, but many remained grounded at the war's end, awaiting new generators.  Despite its problems, the C-124 had demonstrated that it was the cheapest air transport per ton-mile in the Air Force inventory.

Source: http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/aircraft/c-124.htm

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Remembrances

Steve Troutman - In Remembrance of Robert Bushong

Yesterday at a family gathering, a cousin asked if I knew where an uncle was buried.  I did and a discussion about our uncle began.  Do you have any information about a plane crash of American servicemen returning from Korea in June of 1953?  Supposedly it was, and maybe still is, the worst military air craft disaster in history.  There were no survivors.  The same number perished in this disaster as did when the nuclear sub "Thresher" was crushed in the Atlantic Ocean on maneuvers.  My uncle's name was Robert Bushong, aka Bob from Lititz, PA.  Any information will be greatly appreciated.  My first name is Robert after my uncle.  I was born on June 29, 1953.  It is my understanding that Bob was killed 10 days prior to my arrival.  My cousin named his son Bobby in honor of Robert and now we would like to know more about the crash that took his life.

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Herman Cupp - In Remembrance of Members of the 802nd Engineers

Several men on the plane were members of Companies A, B, C & HQ of the 802nd Engineers. Their headquarters were located at K13 (Suwon) Airstrip in Korea. Cpl. Herman Cupp of Tennessee considers himself lucky that he wasn’t a Globemaster fatality, because when he went on R&R on February 13 of 1953, he flew on that same Globemaster. A member of Company A, Cupp had been in Korea since September of 1952. He was head equipment mechanic in the motor pool for Company A.

On the day he flew in the Globemaster to Japan, he said that the officer in charge announced to the passengers (after they were already in flight) that the plane was having problems. They were losing the ability to generate electricity. The passengers were seated in folding seats that lined the sides of the plane. There were no parachutes available, so all of the passengers were ordered to put on their Mae West life jackets in case the plane went down in water. “I don’t recall being worried at the time,” said Cupp, “but I wasn’t ready to return to Korea on the same plane, either. The Globemaster made an emergency landing that night, although I don’t know where. I remember that we finished the rest of the trip by bus. On the return trip to Korea, we flew back on another plane.”

Cupp said that his company was on the front lines north of the 38th parallel when news came back that a member of the survey crew had gone down in the Globemaster crash. “The surveyors’ home base was K13,” said Cupp. “We were on TDY in Kumwha Valley to build an airstrip for the 2nd and 3rd Army. There were about 25 men in the company—three mechanics and the others were operators and that sort of thing. All of the workers were from Company A, but the surveyors were from Headquarters Company. They didn’t live in my tent, but I helped to supply electricity for theirs. News came out of Headquarters that one of the surveyors died in the crash. I believe he was a boy named Lockwood.”

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Bushong Family - In Remembrance of Robert Bushong

Steve Troutman, nephew of Robert Bushong, told the KWE:

"In my search for a photo and obituary, I just discovered a letter written July 9,1953 from Headquarters 802D Engineer Aviation Battalion APO 970 from Earl S. Wilson Major CE (USAF) The second paragraph writes:

"The accident in which Robert was involved occurred as he was returning from Japan where he had taken rest leave. The C-124 in which he was traveling departed Tachikawa Air Force Base at 1631 hours 18 June 1953. Immediately after take off the pilot found it necessary to feather one engine and prepare to return to Tachikawa. On the down-wind approach, the plane dropped from Ground Controlled Approach surveillance and crashed short of the field at 1634 hours. Witnessed stated that there were no survivors and that death was instantaneous."

The letter goes on to express his sympathy and comments about Robert and services held at the Battalion on Sunday 21 June by Battalion Chaplain Bradley T. Morse."

Click HERE to view a copy of the letter.
View Death Notice newspaper clipping
View Obituary newspaper clipping

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Donald Donat - Remembrance of the Victims

I was in the radio room of the 374th Communication Squadron at the time of the crash.  They were monitoring air traffic at the time, and we heard the call from the 124.  As I remember, the pilot reported one port engine failing and within a minute or two he called and said he had lost his other port engine.  That was the last we heard.  Sgt. Matt Welton and I went outside and could see the smoke off in the distance.  We took a Jeep and went to the crash scene.  There were 128 on the manifest, but in counting the bodies they came up with 129.  At first they thought they may have killed someone on the ground.  As it turned out, one of the 374th boys had put his brother on the plane to fly back to Korea where he was stationed.  This happened often where guys hitched rides.  Unfortunately, this time it cost the guy his brother.  I don't remember what his name was.  I only know that you never forget the smell.

Matt and I were right at the crash, up close.  It happened in late afternoon, as I remember.  I had gone to the radio room to meet Matt, and we were going to go to dinner.  When we arrived at the scene, it was a smoldering mess of pieces.  The recovery people were placing the bodies on buses that were used to transport serious stretcher cases from Korea normally.  This evening they were used to take the bodies back to base.

The plane pieces varied in size.  The tail vertical section was in almost one piece.  The body of the plane was in hundreds of pieces.  The engines were whole.  I believe that it hit at about 20 or 25 degrees.  When it hit, the force made it bounce back about five feet.  We could tell by the marks the engines made in the dirt.  The bodies were primarily outside, as the plane was torn apart.  The crew compartment, however, was crushed, and the pilot and copilot were mashed in the plane.

We stayed until dark.  I came back on the 19th and took pictures of the crash.  I didn't take the time to go get a camera when it happened.  All we were trying to do was get there to see if we could help.  Of course, there was no need.  They were all dead.

How did I feel?  Well, as I remember, like someone hit me in my stomach--short of breath, shaken.  And as I said, the smell of burnt flesh.  Terrible smell!!  Sad to think that they had just finished their R&R and were on their way back to Korea.  I guess it could have been worse if it had happened on the way to Japan and they had never had their R&R.  But just think...they were mostly in their teens and twenties.  Never really lived.  Many with no wife or children.  Sad.

As I remember, they brought a bulldozer and plowed a road between a row of houses back about 100 yards in the field to the site.  I believe it was a potato field.  The first there were the crash crews, and I believe it was the Army Med Evac unit that had the buses.  They used to meet the planes coming in from Korea MASH units and take them to hospitals in Japan.  I don't know who counted the bodies and I don't know the name of the guy who put his brother on the plane.  I just remember everyone talking about how badly he felt.  I didn't know him and I don't know if he got to go home or not.

As to the smell, burnt pork comes to mind, but when you know it's a funeral fire of 129 good GIs, it makes you sick.  I never saw anything on the crash until I wanted to tell our local newspaper about it.  They are planning an article on it for--I guess for want of better words--"War Stories."  I wasn't sure of the date.  I should have looked on the back of my pictures.  I had dated them.  But I went to Google and found your site and another site that mentioned the crash.

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Bernard L. Large Jr. - Remembrance of a West Pointer

My father, Capt. Bernard L. Large Sr., was standing at the end of the line waiting to bard this plane on June 18, 1953.  He was tapped on the shoulder from behind and turned around to find another Captain standing there.  This man was a West Point graduate, and in the U.S. Infantry.  He had noticed my father's Combat Infantryman's Badge on his left breast pocket.  This award was from the Second World War from combat in the Pacific with the 10th Infantry Division.  He remarked that he did not yet have the C.I.B. and desperately needed it for his career (professional soldier).  The war in Korea was drawing to a close at this point, and this man stated that he was afraid it would end before he got over to Korea.  He asked my father if he would be willing to trade places with him and allow him to go in my father's place.  My father would fly out the next day in this man's place on the shuttle flight to Korea.  My father agreed, and the West Pointer walked with my father to the manifest officer who was boarding the passengers.  This man had the power to nullify the arrangement.  After thinking it over a few moments, he finally agreed to the switch, took the boarding pass from my father, asked his name, scratched out my father's name, asked the West Pointer his name, penciled this name in over my father's, and handed him my father's boarding pass.  The manifest officer then told the West Pointer that he would be boarding in about ten minutes.  The West Pointer turned to my father, shook hands with him, and thanked him for the favor.  My father then went back upstairs to the officers' quarters, and went back to bed.  The West Pointer boarded the plane ten minutes later, the flight took off, and moments later crashed in a rice paddy just outside Tokyo.  The award (C.I.B.) that had almost cost my father his life in World War II had saved it nine years later during another war.

In Korea, my father was a company commander with the Army's most renowned unit, the famous 27th Infantry "Russian Wolfhounds" Regiment of the elite 25th Infantry "Tropic Lightning" Division.  He retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in 1953 after thirty years' service to his country.

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Jim Escalle - Remembrance of Jimmy L. Escalle

Jim Escalle happened to be browsing the web when he came across the KWE page about the C-124 crash at Tachikawa. Jim's uncle, 2/Lt. Jimmy L. Escalle, was MIA in Korea June 19. There is a website devoted to his memory and to that of the men of the 36th Fighter-Bomber Squadron.  It can be found at http://www.36thfbs.com/.  Jim wrote:

"Besides several enlisted personnel from my uncle's squadron (36th FBS) who perished on that flight, there were three pilots and their flight surgeon. Kenneth Mayo was the flight surgeon, and Albert Hamilton, William Stacy, and Raoul Mouton were all F-86 Sabre pilots in the 36th. Both Mouton and Hamilton graduated from Webb AFB in Class 52-F."

Jim also attached a few photos for the KWE: one showing 2/Lt. Raoul Mouton on the hood of a jeep; one showing 1/Lt. Albert Hamilton relaxing outside the Quonset hut with a pipe in his mouth; one with Hamilton in t-shirt sitting on his bunk; and another photo of a C-124 from the same squadron as the one which crashed. Jim's photos can be seen in the Photo Gallery at the very bottom of this page.

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Marcia Ovrebro - Remembrance of Sherman Canney

"When I was a very small child, my Mom exchanged many letters with Sherman Canney from New Hampshire. I am now 60 years old, and my military-assistance projects have often been in tribute to his memory. I was only four or five when they started writing to one another.  She said he was like a "big brother" for me--and I should always remember him, although we had never met.

Sherman always said, in his letters that nothing would even stop him from meeting his "family" in Southern Minnesota. He was scheduled to soon return from Korea, and our family was so excited to finally meet him. However, the plane crash stopped our meeting.  But the crash did not stop his memory from traveling with me the rest of my life . . . over 50 years that his life and his memory have motivated me to love and to care, and to nurture and to encourage military and their families.

For over 50 years, I have searched for information about that plane crash, but I could not find any details until this early morning hour on December 27, 2007.... That in itself is like a holiday gift to me. Unfortunately, I have not been able to track a contact with his family.  I do not remember at this time the city in New Hampshire where his family lived. He used to write about regularly receiving letters on alternate days from his Mom, his fiancee, and my Mom--just like clockwork, and he depended on those letters to get him through the struggles of war.

That crash was not widely publicized, and many people did not realize its existence. However, one little girl--who is now a senior, will not ever forget the impact of that fateful crash 54 years ago. Sherman Canney's memory lives on each time I see a military person and each time I pray or contact someone who devotes his life to preserving and to protecting our country. When someone dies, I feel like "my big brother" has died all over again....  Yet in my heart, Sherman will always live. - Sincerely, Marcia Ovrebo" [Posted 12/27/07]

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Kimberly Logie Reed - Remembrance of Warren R. Pool

Warren R. Pool, nicknamed the "Gentle Giant" (he was 6'7" tall), served in the Army in World War II and the Korean War. He was a Sergeant 1st Class with the 622nd Engineers Aviation Maintenance Company. He was killed in the C-124A Globemaster crash on June 18, 1953 in Japan, one month and one day before his 35th birthday.  Although I never met him (I was born 12 years after his death) I always wished I had.  His sister was my beloved grandmother, Dorothy Pool Culver Groves.

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Ray Gamma - Remembrance of Narcisco Gutierrez Jr.

During the time I was in Korea, Narcisco was stationed 20 miles from Seoul in an Air Force unit located next the air base in Suwon, Korea. I didn't know it at time. The last time I saw him was in 1951 at Shepard Air Force Base in Texas where I completed my boot training.  I have a picture of four of us Santa Clara High School buddies that was taken at Shepard Air Force Base, Texas in January 1951. They are from left to right, Ruben Lopez, myself, Ron Goulart and Narcisco Gutierrez. All of us four served in Korea and survived the war except for Narcisco.

Shepard Air Force Base, Texas January 1951 (Click picture for a larger view)

Narcisco Gutierrez Jr. (Click picture for a larger view)

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Passenger List

[The KWE would like to post information about each of the following persons who perished in the Globemaster crash.  If any family members or friends have information to share about any of the crash fatalities, we encourage you to contact Lynnita@koreanwar-educator.org.]

• Adkins, Robert C.
• Agnew, Arthur W.
  Airman First Class Agnew was a member of the 8th Field Service Squadron, U.S. Air Force.  Airman First Class Agnew was awarded the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.
• Anderson, Donald J.
  Airman First Class Anderson was a member of Headquarters, 51st Fighter Interceptor Group, U.S. Air Force.  Airman First Class Anderson was awarded the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Korean War Service Medal
• Arnold, Richard D.
  Airman Second Class Arnold was a member of the 35th Fighter-Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter-Bomber Group.  Airman Second Class Arnold was awarded the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Korean War Service Medal.
• Athey, Verl C.
  Verl C. Athey was born November 24, 1916, a son of Harvey Everett and Mina Aletha Theobold Athey.  He was in World War II and Korea.  Major Athey was a member of Headquarters, 51st Fighter Interceptor Group, U.S. Air Force. Major Athey was awarded the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Korean War Service Medal.  He was survived by his brother Marvin S. Athey, and sisters Eunice Isabelle and Myrna Ardith.  He is buried in Wauneta Cemetery, Chase County, Nebraska.
• Atkins, Robert C. Jr.
  Airman First Class Atkins was a member of the 35th Fighter-Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter-Bomber Group.
• Basham, James R.
  Airman Third Class Basham was a member of the 8th Supply Squadron, 8th Fighter Bomber Group.
• Bass, Phillip E.
  Private First Class Bass was a member of Headquarters and Service Company, 802nd Engineer Aviation Construction Battalion.
• Battani, Geno A.
  Airman First Class Battani was a member of the 80th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter Bomber Group.  He was 22 years old.  Geno was survived by his father, Adolph, employed by Woods Bros., Des Moines; a sister, Mrs. Ray Girton of Madrid, IA; and a brother, George, also of Madrid.
• Bell, Earl H.
  Private First Class Bell was a member of Company B, 802nd Engineer Aviation Construction Battalion.
• Boston, John T.
  Airman Third Class Boston was a crew member of a C-124A Globemaster transport with the 22nd Troop Carrier Squadron, 374th Troop Carrier Group stationed at Tachikawa Air Base, Japan.
• Bottelbergue, Richard A.
  Private First Class Bottelbergue was a member of Company B, 802nd Engineer Aviation Construction Battalion.
• Braswell, Charles L.
  Private First Class Braswell was a member of Company A, 802nd Engineer Aviation Construction Battalion.
• Brennan, Mark J.
  In Greenwich, Connecticut, Mark Brennan from Kiltimagh, Co. Mayo joined his sister Helen, brother Martin and John (Gerry) Gannon, a neighbor from home.  Two and a half years after emigrating, Mark was drafted in August 1951.  Trained as an antiaircraft artillery gunner in Ft. Bliss, Texas, Brennan was assigned to the 78th AAA Battalion stationed at Suwon Air Force Base, South Korea.  He died, age 23, in the June 1953 crash of a C-124A Globemaster cargo plane ferrying him back to his base in Korea after a week of R&R leave in Japan.
• Brinegar, Rufus L.
  Technical Sergeant Brinegar was a member of the 35th Fighter-Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter-Bomber Group.
• Brown, Thomas W.
  Private First Class Brown was a member of the 919th Engineer Aviation Maintenance Company.
• Broyles, Gerald D.
  Private First Class Broyles was a member of Company B, 802nd Engineer Aviation Construction Battalion.
• Burke, James
  Private First Class Burke was a member of Company B, 802nd Engineer Aviation Construction Battalion.
• Burt, George B.
  George B. Burt, Schroon Lake, New York, was born in 1931.  When he died in the airplane crash, he left a wife and a baby he never saw.  Private First Class Burke was a member of Company B, 802nd Engineer Aviation Construction Battalion.

• Robert & Doris Wedding Day (Click picture for a larger view)

  Bushong, Robert
  Robert Bushong, son of A.W. and Edna Bushong, was married to the former Doris J. Shelley of Lititz, PA.  His wife later married Wilbur Neff, and they had two sons, David & Phillip. Doris passed away several years ago. Wilbur is still alive, and he has now remarried. Wilbur never tried to sever ties with the Bushong family. Robert's nephew Steve Troutman was in his early teens before he discovered how Dave and Phil were "cousins".  Robert Bushong is buried in the Lititz Moravian Cemetery.

• Canney, Sherman C.
• Canyon, Peter
  Airman First Class Canyon was a member of the 31st Air Police Squadron, U.S. Air Force. On June 18, 1953, he was a passenger on a C-124A Globemaster transport traveling from Tachikawa Air Base, Japan to Korea. He was killed when the aircraft crashed about three miles from Tachikawa. Airman First Class Canyon was awarded the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.
• Carforio, Louis V.
• Case, James W.
  Staff Sergeant Case was a member of the 319th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Castor, Calvin Ray
  Airman First Class Castor was a member of the 319th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Church, William L.
  First Lieutenant Church was a crew member of a F-86F Sabrejet fighter with the 12th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 18th Fighter Bomber Wing.
• Cottle, Edward K.
  Airman First Class Cottle was a member of the 39th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 35th Fighter-Interceptor Group.
• Crenshaw, Horace Jr.
  Airman Third Class Crenshaw was a member of the 39th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 35th Fighter-Interceptor Group.

• Raymond Cross

  Cross, Raymond
  Corporal Cross was a member of the 51st Installation Squadron, U.S. Air Force. From Philadelphia, PA, he was born on December 27, 1933.

• Crough, James N. Jr.
• Dawson, Norman L.
  Private First Class Dawson was a member of the 662nd Engineer Aviation Maintenance Company.
• Ervhart, Roy Jr.
• Evans, Wayde Daryl
  Born January 1, 1921, Wayde Daryl Evans was from Ottumwa, Kansas.  Sergeant Evans was a member of the 78th Anti-Aircraft Artillery (Automatic Weapons) Battalion, U.S. Army. He was survived by wife Lena and three children.  The eldest child was Gary Evans.
• Fitzgerald, Mac Lee
  First Lieutenant Fitzgerald was a member of Headquarters, 319th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Fletcher, Johnnie R.
  Private First Class Fletcher was a member of Company A, 802nd Engineer Aviation Construction Battalion.
• Floyd, Walker Ellis
  Staff Sergeant Floyd was a member of the 319th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Fogelhut, Marvin J.
  Sergeant First Class Fogelhut was a member of the 78th Anti-Aircraft Artillery (Automatic Weapons) Battalion, U.S. Army.

• James Jackson Folks

  Folks, James Jackson
  From Inverness, Florida, James was born on May 9, 1930.  Private First Class Folks was a member of Headquarters and Service Company, 802nd Engineer Aviation Construction Battalion.

• Gardiner, Raymond W.
  Airman First Class Gardiner was a member of the 51st Communications Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Garza, George G.
  Airman First Class Garza was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 51st Air Base Group, U.S. Air Force.
• Gay, Francis M.
  Airman First Class Gay was a member of the 8th Communications Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Goodroe, Herman G.
  Airman First Class Goodroe was a member of the 319th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Groff, Robert E.
  Staff Sergeant Groff was a member of the 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing, U.S. Air Force.
• Gutierrez, Narcisco Jr.
  Airman First Class Gutierrez was a member of the 51st Field Service Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Hadley, Raymond E.
  Airman Third Class Hadley was a member of the 8th Maintenance and Supply Group, U.S. Air Force
• Hallas, Robert E.
  Airman First Class Hallas was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 8th Air Base Group, U.S. Air Force.
• Hamilton, Albert R. Jr.
  My father was Lt. Albert R. Hamilton, Jr.  I was 18 months old when he was killed in the C-124 crash in June of 1953.  I never knew him and my mother never spoke of him.  I have gaping holes in my heart where his memory should be. - Terry Mathews, Winnsboro, Texas
• Hardy, Henry L.
  Airman First Class Hardy was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 51st Air Base Group, U.S. Air Force.
• Harrington, John M.
  Airman First Class Harrington was a member of the 35h Fighter-Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter-Bomber Group.
• Hartzler, Thomas
  Corporal Hartzler was a member of the 662nd Engineer Aviation Maintenance Company.
• Heal, Bruce S.
  Airman Second Class Heal was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing, U.S. Air Force.
• Hollis, Andy Jr.
  Airman Second Class Hollis was a member of the 51st Motor Vehicular Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Hora, August W.
  Corporal Hora was a member of the 662nd Engineer Aviation Maintenance Company.
• Hornsby, Walter F.
  Airman First Class Hornsby was a member of the 8th Motor Vehicular Squadron, 8th Fighter Bomber Wing.
• Hunter, Samuel W.
  Airman First Class Hunter was a member of the 25th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, 51st Fighter-Interceptor Group.
• Hyde, Samuel F.
  First Lieutenant Hyde was a crew member of a F-86F Sabrejet fighter with the 12th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 18th Fighter Bomber Wing.
• Ives, Richard E.
  Airman Third Class Ives was a member of the 36th Fighter-Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter-Bomber Group.
• Jones, Ernest D.
  Airman Third Class Jones was a member of the 16th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, 51st Fighter Interceptor Group.
• Jordan, John H. Jr.
• Kelley, Thomas P.
  Staff Sergeant Kelley was a member of the 8th Air Police Squadron, 8th Fighter Bomber Wing.
• Kennedy, Paul E. (Co-pilot)
  Major Kennedy was a veteran of World War II. In Korea, he was the co-pilot of a C-124A Globemaster transport with the 22nd Troop Carrier Squadron, 374th Troop Carrier Group stationed at Tachikawa Air Base, Japan.
• Kirsnis, Raymond J.
  First Lieutenant Kirsnis was a member of the 1993rd Airways and Air Communications Service Mobile Communications Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Kissell, George H.
  Staff Sergeant Kissell was the engineer of a C-124A Globemaster transport with the 22nd Troop Carrier Squadron, 374th Troop Carrier Group stationed at Tachikawa Air Base, Japan.
• Klein, Robert J.
  Airman First Class Klein was a member of the 319th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Knotts, James R.
  Staff Sergeant Knotts was a member of the 8th Air Police Squadron, 8th Fighter Bomber Wing.
• Kolb, Isidore E.
  Private First Class Kolb was a member of the 662nd Engineer Aviation Maintenance Company.
• Lee, Clarence M. Jr.
  Airman Third Class Lee was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 51st Air Base Group, U.S. Air Force.
• Leicht, Donald E.C.
  First Lieutenant Leicht was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 319th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Lenhardt, Leroy W.
  Airman First Class Lenhardt was a member of the 319th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Lockwood, Maurice G.
  Private First Class Lockwood was a member of Company A, 802nd Engineer Aviation Construction Battalion.
• Lowry, Donald E.
  Airman First Class Lowry was a member of the 8th Maintenance Squadron, U.S. Air Force.
• Lucas, Leonard J.
  Airman First Class Lucas was a member of the 8th Supply Squadron, 8th Fighter Bomber Group.
• Marshke, Lawrence B.
  Private First Class Marshke was a member of the 919th Engineer Aviation Construction Battalion.
• Mathieu, Edmond A.
  Private First Class Mathieu was a member of the 78th Anti-Aircraft Artillery (Automatic Weapons) Battalion, U.S. Army.
• Mayo, Kenneth P.
  First Lieutenant Mayo was a member of the 8th Medical Group, 8th Fighter Bomber Wing.  He was one of two Iowans to die in the air crash.  He was a flight surgeon.  According to an Iowa paper, Dr. Mayo's mother was Mrs. Edna C. Mayo, an employee of the registrar's office at Iowa State College.  The only child of parents who were separated, Dr. Mayo was reared in Ames, Iowa by his mother and grandmother, Mrs. Ed Coe.  He was 27 years old on June 3, 1953.  He was married on October 18, 1952 to Carolyn Ann Flodin of Burlington, Iowa, a member of his graduating class at S.U.I.  She was employed at Iowa Ordnance plant in Burlington.  The newspaper stated, "Gordon Gammack, Des Moines Register and Tribune war correspondent who returned recently from Korea, said Friday he had visited several times with Lieutenant Mayo at a Korean jet air base.  Gammack characterized Mayo as 'an exceptionally fine youthful medical officer.'"
• McAninch, Darrell E.
  Airman Third Class McAninch was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing, U.S. Air Force.
• McCorkle, Robert D.
  Major McCorkle was the pilot of a C-124A Globemaster transport with the 22nd Troop Carrier Squadron, 374th Troop Carrier Group stationed at Tachikawa Air Base, Japan.
• McCurtain, Isaac M.
  Airman Third Class McCurtain was a member of the 80th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter Bomber Group.
• McHenry, John A.
  John McHenry was from Canton, Ohio.  He was born on March 21, 1929.
• McLaird, Paul R.
• Mihalic, Raymond M.
• Miller, Vernon W.
• Milner, Obie E.
• Miner, Kenneth A.
• Mixon, Bobby C.
• Modenese, Eugene M.
• Moran, Francis E.
• Mouton, Raoul P. Jr.
• Myller, Ulrich
• Nassif, Donald H.
• Nellermoe, Dale L.
• Painter, Donald I.
  Airman Second Class Painter was a member of the 319th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, U.S. Air Force.  On June 18, 1953, he was a passenger on a C-124A Globemaster transport traveling from Tachikawa Air Base, Japan to Korea.  He was killed when the aircraft crashed about three miles from Tachikawa.  Airman Second Class Painter was awarded the Korean Service Medal and the United Nations Service Medal.
• Peloquin, Raymond H.
• Pool, Warren R.
• Powell, Archie L. Jr.
• Powers, Michael F.
• Rensashe, Joseph
• Riles, Leonard L. - Leonard L. Riles enlisted in the Air Force in February of 1952 and was sent to Korea in November 1953. He was survived by his widow, Sally Scobey (formerly Sally Henfling) from San Rafael, CA. They were married in February of 1952. Riles was a native of Sebring, Florida.
• Roberson, David Jr.
• Rose, James A.
• Rudolph, Donald R.
• Schaeffer, Warren J.
• Schrock, David A.
• Sheets, Richard L.
• Simpson, Edwin J. Jr.
• Simpson, Thomas S.
• Smith, Burton B.
• Smith, Charles C.
• Sorrento, Nicholas S.
• Stacy, William P.
• Staring, John H.
• Steele, Carl Cole
  Carl Steele was a graduate of Winchester, Kentucky High School and served in the Air Force for five years.  After serving in Japan for eighteen months as an Airman First Class, he was killed on June 18, 1953, in an airplane crash near Tokyo, Japan, that claimed 129 lives.  Steele had been flight engineer of a C-124A Globemaster transport with the 22nd Troop Carrier Squadron, 374th Troop Carrier Group  Awarded many medals for his service in Korea, he was survived by his wife, Mrs. Beatrice McGuire Steele, his mother, Mrs. O.F. Baxter, his sisters, Betty Joan Steele (Berger) and Mrs. Georgia Barnett, as well as five brothers, Fred, Luther, Charles, John, and Travis Steele.
• Stopyra, Bartholomew
• Sturdavant, James L.
• Taft, George C.
• Tartaglione, Samuel J.
• Thompson, Primas Jr.
• Tupper, Donald P.
• Van Alen, Robert G.
• Voruz, Herbert G. Jr. (pilot)
• Wade, Thomas E.
• Weaver, Franklin E.
• Wickman, John R.
• Wilkie, Johnny
• Wilson, George V.
• Wright, James R.

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