USAAF
5th AF
8th FG
80th FS
Mark Paler 2003
Pilot 2nd Lt. Earl W. Smith
Crashed August 20, 1943
Mission History
Took off from 3-Mile Drome on a mission against Wewak. After a sucessful mission, this P-38 piloted by Smith decided to perform aerobatics over a transport in Fairfax Harbor off Port Moresby. Slow rolled, and hooked a wing in the water, 300 yards off Paga Point,
after an engine failure. The pilot survived the crash, and was
picked up a local villager and taken back to shore. Written off August
23, 1943 by USAAF.
Norbert Ruff recalls in Ruff Stuff, page 126
"When we came back from the mission and landed all exccept Earl (Smith). He decided to put on a little airshow over a transport in Port Moresby Harbor next to our strip on 3-Mile. He hooked a wing in the water and that's where he ended up. The squadron records could have called it a test hop."
Wreckage
The wreck is broken up, in an area with moderate visibility. Mark Palmer
first dived the site in 2002, and recorded the cockpit's radio call
sign, '3-2201' confirming the aircraft's identity.
Mark Palmer adds:
"The location of this aircraft was shown to me by a local fisherman.
It is one of his fishing spots and he was shown the location by
his uncle. Both his uncle and his father were carriers during the
war and his uncle told him that when this plane crashed he paddled
out to it and picked up the pilot. The uncle is deceased we can't
ask him, as the plane seems to have hit the water pretty hard and
is broken up. The position lies beneath the anti aircraft guns
on Paga hill and Napa Napa point."
References
Thanks to Mark Palmer for the photos and discovery.
Ruff Stuff page 125
P-38
26m
