Jack King
Second Lieutenant Jack King was a Marine fighter pilot with VMF-217.
He was reported missing in action after a strike on Vunakanau airfield, Rabaul area, 9 February 1944 .
Branch
Marine Corps Reserve
Service Number O-25565
Current Status
Remains Not Recovered
Pursuit Category
The DPAA has not publicized this information.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
February 20, 1921
at Downey, CA
Parents
Leo Henry King
Zena Angie (Seaman) King
Education
Big Bear High School
San Bernardino Junior College
Occupation & Employer
Signal Department
Santa Fe Railroad
Service Life
Entered Service
June 1942 (enlisted)
June 23, 1943 (officer)
Home Of Record
Big Bear Lake, CA
Next Of Kin
Mother, Mrs. Zena A. King
Military Specialty
Fighter Pilot
Primary Unit
VMF-217
Campaigns Served
Northern Solomons
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
—
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
Shortly after earning his wings and commission at NATC Corpus Christi, Second Lieutenant Jack King joined VMF-217 – a new Marine fighter squadron forming at El Centro, California. He deployed overseas with this outfit, and flew on some of the squadron’s first combat missions in the Solomon Islands.
On 9 February 1944, VMF-217 escorted a B-25 bomber strike on Vunakanau airfield, a major runway near the Japanese base at Rabaul. Lieutenant King’s Corsair (F4U-1 #02324) was seen over the Keravat area, “apparently… not in any trouble.” In the ensuing dogfight, Marine pilots claimed four Japanese planes destroyed. However, King’s aircraft did not rejoin the formation for the flight back, and he was posted as missing in action.
Captain John D. Hench, King’s division leader, reported seeing an oil slick on the water which “may have been the spot where a plane crashed,” while other pilots reported “‘splashes’ in the same general area.” No other clues about King’s whereabouts were ever learned, and he was declared dead on 17 January 1946. He was the first VMF-217 pilot to lose his life in combat.
Burial Information or Disposition
None; remains not recovered.
Memorials
Manila American Cemetery and Memorial
Namesake of Jack King Post, Veterans of Foreign Wards, Big Bear Lake
Next Of Kin Address
Address of mother, Mrs. Zena King.
Location Of Loss
Lieutenant King was last seen over Keravat, Papua New Guinea.
