Robert Edgar Jones
PFC Robert E. Jones was a Marine radioman and aerial gunner flying with VMSB-236.
He was killed in action while bombing Bonis Airfield, Bougainville, on 20 December 1943.
Branch
Marine Corps Reserve
Service Number 440019
Current Status
Remains not recovered.
Pursuit Category
The DPAA has not publicized this information.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
June 17, 1921
at Wildwood, NJ
Parents
James Barnard Lacey, Sr.
Alma (Pierson) Lacey
Education
Vineland High School (1940)
Occupation & Employer
Kimble Glass Works
Service Life
Entered Service
August 19, 1942
at New York, NY
Home Of Record
80 Marlton Avenue
Camden, NJ
Next Of Kin
Mother, Mrs. Laura Jones
Military Specialty
Aviation radioman/gunner
Primary Unit
VMSB-236
Campaigns Served
Solomon Islands
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
—
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
PFC Robert Jones was a Marine scout-bomber crewman and veteran of several missions in the northern Solomon Islands. His squadron, VMSB-236, flew out of Munda airfield in the Solomon Islands.
On 20 December 1943, a strike on Bonis airfield was ordered by commanding officers. VMSB-236 contributed fourteen crews to this mission, including Jones and his pilot, 1Lt. James B. Lacey, Jr. The American force arrived over Bonis shortly after 1100 hours and began their bombing runs. Pilots and gunners alike were pleased to encounter minimal anti-aircraft fire – but then somebody saw an SBD inverted and going down fast, just 500 feet above the ground. A few seconds later, the plane impacted near the western end of the airstrip and exploded.
All other VMSB-236 crews returned safely and reported the incident. Because there was so little defensive fire, pilots opined that the missing bomber had been knocked from the sky by the blast wave of a friendly bomb – possibly its own. SBD-4 #10477 was stricken from the Navy list; Lacey and Jones were declared missing in action. Given the circumstances of their loss, both men were changed to “killed in action” after a short period.
Burial Information or Disposition
When northern Bougainville passed into Allied control, the remains of a single individual were found at the scene of a plane crash near Buka airfield, just across a narrow strip of water (Buka Passage) from Bonis. The badly fragmented bones were buried in Finschhafen Cemetery #5, and eventually shipped to the Manila mausoleum for possible identification.
Lacey and Jones were both considered as potential matches for “Unknown X-1507” – with Lacey taking a lead due to the available, if meager, physical and dental evidence. However, in the end the identification was disapproved: it could not be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that the remains belonged to Lacey or Jones. The unidentified remains were buried in Fort McKinley National Cemetery.
Memorials
Next Of Kin Address
Address of mother, Mrs. Laura Jones.
Before enlisting, Robert lived with Edgar and Dr. Helen Hedrick, his aunt and uncle, in Vineland.
Location Of Loss
Lacey and Jones were last seen over Bonis Airfield, Bougainville.
