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NAME Frederick Joseph Beck |
NICKNAME — |
SERVICE NUMBER 380090 |
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| UNIT VMSB-143 Radioman / Gunner |
HOME OF RECORD 323 Livingston Avenue Lyndhurst, NJ |
NEXT OF KIN Parents, Mr & Mrs Frederick J. Beck |
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| DATE OF BIRTH March 18, 1925 at New York, NY |
ENTERED SERVICE March 18, 1942 at New York, NY |
DATE OF LOSS May 6, 1943 |
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| REGION Solomon Islands |
CAMPAIGN / AREA New Georgia, Munda |
CASUALTY TYPE Killed In Action |
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| CIRCUMSTANCES OF LOSS PFC Frederick J. Beck was a Marine aviator assigned to VMSB-143, a torpedo bomber squadron operating out of Henderson Field, Guadalcanal. On 6 May 1943, Beck flew as the radioman in TBF-1 Avenger Bureau Number 06227 in a squadron strike on Munda Airfield, New Georgia. Immediately after releasing a bomb over the target, the Avenger was hit by anti-aircraft fire. The left wing disintegrated, and the plane slammed into the ground beside the runway, exploding and burning on impact. “Circumstances surrounding the accident makes it impossible for pilot and crew to have survived the crash,” noted a casualty report. Beck, 1Lt. William C. Spradling, and PFC William C. Strubbe were reported as killed in action. |
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| INDIVIDUAL DECORATIONS Air Medal, Purple Heart |
LAST KNOWN RANK Private First Class |
STATUS OF REMAINS Not recovered. |
MEMORIALS Manila American Cemetery |
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Biography:
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