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NAME Otto John Seifert, Jr. |
NICKNAME — |
SERVICE NUMBER O-10972 |
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| UNIT VMF-112 Pilot |
HOME OF RECORD 225 South State Street New Ulm, MN |
NEXT OF KIN Father, Dr. Otto Seifert |
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| DATE OF BIRTH March 30, 1921 at New Ulm, MN |
ENTERED SERVICE June 15, 1942 (commissioned) at Miami, FL |
DATE OF LOSS May 13, 1943 |
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| REGION Solomon Islands |
CAMPAIGN / AREA Russell Islands |
CASUALTY TYPE Missing In Action Declared Dead May 14, 1945 |
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| CIRCUMSTANCES OF LOSS First Lieutenant Otto J. Seifert, Jr., was a Marine pilot assigned to VMF-112, a fighter squadron based at Guadalcanal. On 13 May 1943, Lieutenant Seifert piloted a Corsair (F4U-1 02170) on a mission to intercept a Japanese reconnaissance bomber near the Russell Islands. The Americans tangled with the fighter escort in “the first real fight the Corsairs have had in this area” and came away the clear victors, claiming 16 Zeros shot down at the cost of four US planes. Lieutenant Seifert was one of those who fell – he was last seen in a 45-degree dive, trailing smoke, about five miles northwest of the Russells. He was declared dead on 14 May 1945. |
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| INDIVIDUAL DECORATIONS Purple Heart |
LAST KNOWN RANK First Lieutenant (posthumous Captain) |
STATUS OF REMAINS Not recovered. |
MEMORIALS Manila American Cemetery |
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Biography:
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