However, the squadrons became separated and reached the Japanese independently. ", On the morning of December 7, 1941, Lieutenant Richard Halsey Best was impatient to get back to Pearl Harbor. The Japanese had sent an invasion fleet by unknown route across the Pacific under cover of bad weather to take Midway Island and from there stage an invasion of the Hawaiian Islands, which they had failed to do at Pearl Harbor. Lieutenant Commander Richard Halsey "Dick" Best, USN, (March 24, 1910 October 28, 2001) was a dive bomber pilot and squadron commander in the United States Navy during World War II. In brief, the aircraft returning to Pearl had a terrible report to make. She passed away in 1968. Richard Halsey Best US Navy Pilot. The other two TF's went to Samoa at Pye's insistence. Getting Started You are nearing the transfer limit for memorials managed by Find a Grave. CONTENT MAY BE COPYRIGHTED BY WIKITREE COMMUNITY MEMBERS. "United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VTHF-868: 26 July 2019), Richard H Best, Election Precinct 1, Escambia, Florida, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 17-6, sheet 30B, line 47, family , Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. His group was tasked with providing cover for Lieutenant Eugene E. Lindsey's torpedo bombers should they find the Japanese carriers. Considering this unique accomplishment, Admiral Thomas Moorer and Vice-Admiral Bill Houser made a serious but failed effort to recommend Best for the Medal of Honor after his death in 2001. During the morning flight on June 4 flying at 20,000 ft (6,100 m) several VB-6 pilots encountered difficulties with oxygen supply, so Best gave the order to reduce the altitude to 15,000 ft (4,600 m). Richard Halsey Best - 75 Years Later - Duffy's Political Soapbox Bayonne, Hudson, New Jersey, United States, Santa Monica, Los Angeles, California, United States, https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VTHF-868, https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2W7-V59M, https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/Blog/Post/10258/Battle-of-Midway-Hero-Rests-at-ANC?fbclid=IwAR0k_rqxLdRKAfo-YKaYxWWy2GK3_ntMiZieaoP8-6CiqAkzzpEZc_gny-g, https://valor.militarytimes.com/hero/19777, https://www.history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/wars-conflicts-and-operations/world-war-ii/world-war-ii-profiles/best-vb-6.html, https://peoplepill.com/people/richard-halsey-best/, Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia, Distinguished Flying Cross (United States), USS Enterprise (CV-6), United States Navy, World War II. At the Academy, Best proved to be a conscientious student and graduated with honors in 1932. He put in a request for a transfer to the Pacific Fleet as that. 4 June 1942, was the last day Richard Halsey Best flew for the U.S. Navy. Becoming a Find a Grave member is fast, easy and FREE. To him, the island was not worth the cost of keeping it. Yamaguchis carrier force was part of the attack on Pearl Harbor. The United States Naval Station Tutuila (an island) was the major base in the region. DBS MORNING SHOW & OBITUARIES 25TH APRIL 2023 APRIL 2023 - Facebook Richard Halsey. Richard Halsey. Richard H. Best, a former Navy bomber pilot who scored hits on two of the four Japanese aircraft carriers sunk in the critical Battle of Midway during World War II, has died. Thanks for your help! On May 31, 1940, Best received orders to join Bombing Squadron Six (VB-6), which was assigned to the aircraft carrier USSEnterprise. Login to find your connection. As it turned out, the Japanese were interested in a base a little closer to Hawaii. After reinforcing Samoa, the Yorktown and Enterprise went their separate ways on January 29, the Yorktown to raid the Gilbert Islands, an archipelago between Hawaii and Papua New Guinea (off Australia), and the Enterprise to raid the Marshall Islands. Dickie Best's wife was Ann Best. The force seemed sufficient, so Kimmel sent the Lexington as part of TF-11 (formerly TF-12), into the Marshalls to attack Japanese bases and supply lines. Richard Halsey Best was 91 years old when he died. Richard Halsey Best, II (deceased) - Genealogy With the carriers were fleets of cruisers, destroyers and other ships. Try again later. [19], Best was married to Doris Avis (Albrio) (19141968) and had a daughter, a son, a grandson, and a step-daughter.[19]. The Japanese bomber barely missed the flight deck, its wingtip cut the tail off Gaidos Dauntless, and spun the parked aircraft. What was historically accurate in the movie Pearl Harbor? Best wrote the preface to the manual of Battlehawks 1942 flight simulation video game released in 1988 by LucasFilm Games. Today, June 4th, in commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Midway, America owes an enormous debt of gratitude to a man few have ever heard of - Lieutenant Commander Richard Halsey Best. He also led his squadron in many major operations during the beginning of the, 6. Having no hope of relief, it surrendered. His first assignment was Fighting Squadron Two (VF-2B) aboard the aircraft carrier, "It'd be nice to please everyone but I thought it would be more interesting to have a point of view. By now it is well-known to history that the Japanese naval forces conducting a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, succeeded in effecting a surprise, but were themselves surprised by the absence of the two aircraft carriers, the Enterprise and the Lexington, from the harbor.