Douglas M. Webster
Encyclopedia
Douglas M. Webster, a lieutenant junior grade and a U.S. Navy aviator
, was the sole victim of a 1965 Broken Arrow
in the Pacific Ocean, that went unacknowledged by the Pentagon
until 1981. His A-4 Skyhawk
was lost over the side of the USS Ticonderoga (CVA-14) on 5 December 1965 while the attack jet, armed with a B43 nuclear bomb
, was being rolled from a hangar bay onto an elevator.
on 5 December 1965 when the jet rolled off an elevator of the aircraft carrier
, in 16,000 feet of water in the Pacific Ocean, 80 miles from one of the Ryukyu Islands
, Okinawa during a training exercise. The Skyhawk was being rolled from the number 2 hangar bay to the number 2 elevator when it was lost. Airframe, pilot, and the bomb were never found. No public mention was made of the incident at the time and it would not come to light until a 1981 Pentagon
report revealed that a one-megaton bomb had been lost. Japan then asked for details of the incident.
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
, was the sole victim of a 1965 Broken Arrow
Broken Arrow
Broken Arrow may refer to:*Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, United States*Broken Arrow Public Schools- Film and television :*Broken Arrow , a Golden Globe-winning western film...
in the Pacific Ocean, that went unacknowledged by the Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
until 1981. His A-4 Skyhawk
A-4 Skyhawk
The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk is a carrier-capable ground-attack aircraft designed for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps. The delta winged, single-engined Skyhawk was designed and produced by Douglas Aircraft Company, and later McDonnell Douglas. It was originally designated the A4D...
was lost over the side of the USS Ticonderoga (CVA-14) on 5 December 1965 while the attack jet, armed with a B43 nuclear bomb
B43 nuclear bomb
The B43 was a United States air-dropped variable yield nuclear weapon used by a wide variety of fighter bomber and bomber aircraft.The B43 was developed from 1956 by Los Alamos National Laboratory, entering production in 1959. It entered service in April 1961. Total production was 2,000 weapons,...
, was being rolled from a hangar bay onto an elevator.
Broken Arrow
Webster, the A-4E Skyhawk, BuNo 151022, of Attack Squadron VA-56, and the nuclear weapon were lost off the coast of JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
on 5 December 1965 when the jet rolled off an elevator of the aircraft carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
, in 16,000 feet of water in the Pacific Ocean, 80 miles from one of the Ryukyu Islands
Ryukyu Islands
The , also known as the , is a chain of islands in the western Pacific, on the eastern limit of the East China Sea and to the southwest of the island of Kyushu in Japan. From about 1829 until the mid 20th century, they were alternately called Luchu, Loochoo, or Lewchew, akin to the Mandarin...
, Okinawa during a training exercise. The Skyhawk was being rolled from the number 2 hangar bay to the number 2 elevator when it was lost. Airframe, pilot, and the bomb were never found. No public mention was made of the incident at the time and it would not come to light until a 1981 Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
report revealed that a one-megaton bomb had been lost. Japan then asked for details of the incident.