Robert Francis Simpson
Second Lieutenant Robert F. “Bob” Simpson was a Marine fighter pilot with VMF-121.
He was reported missing in action at Guadalcanal on 11 November 1942.
Branch
Marine Corps Reserve
Service Number O-10209
Current Status
Remains Not Recovered
Pursuit Category
The DPAA has not publicized this information
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
May 2, 1919
at Evanston, IL
Parents
Albert Leslie Simpson
Ethel Elizabeth (Watkins) Simpson)
Education
Amundsen High School (1937)
Loyola University (1941)
Occupation & Employer
Recent graduate
Service Life
Entered Service
April 2, 1941 (enlisted)
May 26, 1942 (officer)
Home Of Record
312 West Maple Avenue
Libertyville, IL
Next Of Kin
Wife, Mrs. Dorothy Behm Simpson
Military Specialty
Pilot
Primary Unit
VMF-121
Campaigns Served
Solomon Islands / Guadalcanal
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
—
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
Robert Simpson enlisted in the Navy Reserve in the spring of 1941; in May 1942, he earned his pilot’s wings and a Marine Corps commission at NATC Corpus Christi. After additional stateside training, he deployed overseas as a member of Marine Fighting Squadron (VMF) 121, and arrived at Guadalcanal on 9 October 1942. For the next two months, Simpson flew combat missions out of Henderson Field as a member of the “Cactus Air Force.”
At 0930 on 11 November 1942, twenty-one Wildcats took off from Henderson Field to intercept a strike force of Japanese dive bombers and fighters. Thick cloud cover worked to the attacker’s advantage, and in the ensuing dogfight six Wildcats went down. Lieutenant Thomas Mann made a water landing near Tulagi and swam ashore, while Technical Sergeant Joe Palko’s body was found and buried on the island. Second Lieutenants Joseph L. Narr, Roy M. A. Ruddell, and Bob Simpson (piloting F4F-4 BuNo 03483) failed to return and were never seen again.
(The sixth pilot, Staff Sergeant William H. Coahran, Jr., of VMF-112 bailed out over Japanese territory and never returned.)
Burial Information or Disposition
None; remains not recovered. Simpson was officially declared dead on 19 February 1945.
Robert Simpson was posthumously promoted to the rank of captain.
Memorials
Next Of Kin Address
Address of wife, Mrs. Dorothy Simpson.
!["On the 29th [September] we embarked on a converted carrier to be catapulted off," said Joe Foss. "It was the first time any of us had catapulted, yet there was only one accident. The hooking gadget broke when it was the turn of Lt. Robert F. Simpson of Chicago. His plane skidded overboard. You've seen pictures of such an accident – the pilot came out of his cockpit onto the wing, then took his Mae West when the plane sank. Well, it was the pictures of this incident you saw. A photographer was on hand alert enough to catch the whole thing." Official USMC photo / excerpt from war diary of USS Copahee, September 1942.](https://i0.wp.com/missingmarines.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/simpson_rf_crash_composite.jpg?fit=1500%2C2448&ssl=1){kind=link}
