John Joseph Hofrichter, Jr.
Private John J. Hofrichter, Jr. was a Marine Corps aviator who flew with VMSB-142.
He died in a training accident near Espiritu Santo on 1 December 1942.
Branch
Marine Corps Regular
Service Number 386345
Current Status
Remains Not Recovered
Pursuit Category
The DPAA has not publicized this information.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
December 16, 1924
at Chicago, IL
Parents
John Joseph Hofrichter, Sr.
Barbara (Drazdik) Hofrichter (d. 1933)
Stepmother, Zdenka (Dvorak) Hofrichter
Education
Details unknown
Occupation
Details unknown
Service Life
Entered Service
April 6, 1942
at Chicago, IL
Home Of Record
2236 S. Christiana Avenue
Chicago, IL
Next Of Kin
Father, Mr. John Hofrichter Sr.
Specialty
Aircrew
Radioman / Gunner
Primary Unit
VMSB-142
Campaigns Served
None
Individual Decorations
—
Additional Service Details
—
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
Private John Hofrichter was a Marine Corps aviator. After training in California as a radioman and aerial gunner, he joined VMSB-142 and deployed overseas for additional training at Espiritu Santo in the Solomon Islands.
On the morning of 1 December 1942, Hofrichter and Second Lieutenant Nial Sherwood Jr. boarded an SBD-type bomber and took off for a routine dive-bombing practice flight. Due to a tragic mishap of unknown cause, their plane failed to recover from a dive and crashed into the waters of St. Philip & St. James Bay. No trace of either Marine could be located after the crash.
Hofrichter and Sherwood were carried on muster rolls as “missing, not in action” until June of 1943, at which point they were officially declared dead.
Burial Information or Disposition
None; aircraft crashed in water, and remains were not recovered.
Next Of Kin Address
Address of father, Mr. John Hofrichter Sr.
Location Of Loss
Approximate location of the crash, “in St. Philip & St. James Bay, 300 yards northwest of River Jordan, Espiritu Santo.”
