William Ray Proffitt
Corporal William R. Proffitt was a Marine aviator who flew with VMSB-232.
His aircraft was lost in a storm near Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, on 6 September 1942.
Branch
Marine Corps Regular
Service Number 311714
Current Status
Remains Not Recovered
Pursuit Category
The DPAA has not publicized this information.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
February 11, 1923
at Roscoe, TX
Parents
William Roscoe Proffitt
Essie Odell (Gotcher) Proffitt
later Mrs. Essie Tutt
Education
Details unknown
Occupation & Employer
Details unknown
Service Life
Entered Service
May 31, 1941
at Dallas, TX
Home Of Record
Roscoe, TX
Next Of Kin
Mother, Mrs. Essie Tutt
Military Specialty
Aviation Radioman / Gunner
Primary Unit
VMSB-232
Campaigns Served
Solomon Islands / Guadalcanal
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
—
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
Corporal William Proffitt served in VMSB-232 as a rear-seat man, operating an aircraft radio and a .30-caliber machine gun. He frequently flew with Second Lieutenant Charles B. McAllister; together, they participated in strikes against Japanese ground troops on the ‘Canal, and shipping near Ramos Island.
On 7 September 1942, Major Fletcher L. Brown, Jr. led a division of dive bombers in a strike on Japanese harbor installations on Gizo in the western Solomons. No aircraft were lost in the attack, but a “violent rain squall” blew in on the return flight. The formation, flying at just 200′ altitude, broke apart as each pilot tried to make his own way through the storm. One aircraft was seen to crash, and another disappeared in the gloom. The bomber carrying McAllister and Proffitt (SBD-3 BuNo 03342 or 03379) never returned Henderson Field.
Both men were declared dead on 7 September 1943.
Burial Information or Disposition
None reported; wreck site not found.
Memorials
Next Of Kin Address
Address of mother, Mrs. Essie Tutt.
Location Of Loss
McAllister and Proffitt were lost on a return flight from Gizo to Guadalcanal. Exact location is not known.
Born ten years after the war, my memories of my uncle, were based on his photo over my Grandmother’s mantle and her stories. She still had his medals and the letter from the CO of VMSB 232.
She told us grandkids the story of how my uncles, William Ray and Jay Vee, had talked her into falsifying their ages to get jobs with the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). They would both uses these documents later to enlist underage. Jay Vee survived the war having went into the Army where he ended up as a tanker with Patton.
Many years later I would make contact with the survivors of the campaign thru there reunion address. One of the memories they told me was of packing up his belongings to mail home. He was remembered as being short in height and a boxer.