Joseph Augustus Sullivan, Jr.

On 14 February 1944, VMTB-233 ordered a mission to lay mines in Rabaul’s Simpson Harbor. Dropping a Mark 12 naval mine from an Avenger required slow speed and low altitude, so planners decided to send three separate waves at one-hour intervals under cover of darkness. Group A departed Piva Uncle airfield at 1230 AM for the ninety-minute flight to Rabaul. Squadron Number 14 – pilot 1Lt. John F. Bartholf, Jr., radioman PFC Raymond P. Lagro, and turret gunner SSgt. Joseph A. Sullivan, Jr. – was a “spare” plane not on the main roster, but took off when another Avenger suffered a mechanical failure

Unfortunately for the attackers, Japanese spotlight crews were on the alert – and “very accurate in picking up the planes and keeping them in the light.” Anti-aircraft fire exploded around the Avengers, who found themselves running a gauntlet to drop their mines accurately. One plane burst into flames and fell from the sky northwest of Lakunai Airfield. The Group A leader attempted to warn the following waves, but a malfunctioning radio kept the message from getting through. VMTB-233 lost a total of six Avengers and eighteen Marines on the disastrous mission.

Bartholf’s Plane #14 (TBF-1 06311) failed to return from the Group A flight, and it was presumed that this was the plane seen in flames near Lakunai. The entire crew was declared dead on 15 February 1945; Bartholf was awarded a posthumous Distinguished Flying Cross, while Lagro and Sullivan received Air Medals.