Theo Lee Sparks
First Lieutenant Theo L. Sparks was a Marine pilot who flew with VMTB-232.
He was reported missing in action at Bougainville on 23 December 1943.
Branch
Marine Corps Reserve
Service Number O-16515
Current Status
Remains not recovered.
Pursuit Category
The DPAA has not publicized this information.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
February 10, 1920
at Salt Lake City, UT
Parents
James Monroe Sparks
Eva Isabel (Thompson) Sparks
Education
Grand Junction High School (1938)
Mesa College (1940)
Occupation & Employer
Mechanic
Lockheed Aircraft
Service Life
Entered Service
April 23, 1942 (enlisted)
December 11, 1942 (commission)
Home Of Record
Alhambra, CA
Next Of Kin
Wife, Mrs. Edwina Sparks
Military Specialty
Pilot
Primary Unit
VMTB-232
Campaigns Served
Solomon Islands
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
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Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
First Lieutenant Theo Sparks was a Marine pilot with VMTB-232 – a veteran squadron flying TBF “Avenger” bombers in combat during the Solomon Islands campaign.
On 23 December 1943, the “Red Devils” were assigned to hit Japanese installations at four locations on Bougainville. The division including TBF-1 #23871 – pilot Sparks, with PFCs Calvin N. Rader and William R. Sauter as crew – was assigned to the Aitara strike. Sparks pushed the big Avenger into its dive at 8,000 feet and aimed the nose for the target.
Disaster struck at 1,500 feet, just after Sparks released his bomb. “The starboard wing peeled back at the hinge, as if it were being folded,” reported Lt. Everson, a fellow pilot. “Plane rolled to the right and went into water on its back with wing still on plane. A parachute opened at about 100 feet. The parachute was seen on the water, but the pilot never came up.”
A crash boat arrived within the hour, but found no survivors. It is unclear whether mechanical failure or enemy action was to blame for the wing collapse.
Burial Information or Disposition
The parachute sighting gave the squadron a faint hope that one member of the crew survived the crash; Sparks, Sauter, and Rader were carried as missing in action for the customary year and a day. It will never be known which man jumped from the plane, as all three were declared dead on 24 December 1944.
Sparks was promoted to the rank of Captain while in missing status.
Next Of Kin Address
Address of wife, Mrs. Edwina LeBaron Sparks.
Theo and Edwina were married on 24 April 1943.
Location Of Loss
The Avenger crashed into the water just offshore of Aitara Mission.
