PropertyValue
rdf:type
rdfs:label
  • Newton Henry Mason
rdfs:comment
  • Newton Henry Mason (24 December 1918 – May 1942) was a decorated United States Navy fighter pilot of World War II who was killed in action at the Battle of the Coral Sea. Mason was born in New York City on 24 December 1918. He enlisted as a seaman in the United States Naval Reserve on 7 November 1940 and on 10 February 1941 was appointed an aviation cadet. Assigned to U.S. Navy Fighting Squadron 3 (VF-3) aboard the aircraft carrier USS Saratoga (CV-3) as an F4F Wildcat fighter pilot in September 1941, he reported to VF-3 while it was stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Ewa in Ewa, Territory of Hawaii, in January 1942 after Saratoga had been damaged by a Japanese submarine torpedo.
owl:sameAs
Unit
  • *Fighting Squadron 3 *Fighting Squadron 2
dcterms:subject
dbkwik:military/property/wikiPageUsesTemplate
serviceyears
  • 1940
Birth Date
  • 1918-12-24
Branch
death place
  • Coral Sea
Name
  • Newton Henry Mason
Birth Place
  • New York, New York
Awards
death date
  • 1942-05-08
Rank
  • 5
Allegiance
Battles
  • *World War II **Pacific War **Battle of the Coral Sea
abstract
  • Newton Henry Mason (24 December 1918 – May 1942) was a decorated United States Navy fighter pilot of World War II who was killed in action at the Battle of the Coral Sea. Mason was born in New York City on 24 December 1918. He enlisted as a seaman in the United States Naval Reserve on 7 November 1940 and on 10 February 1941 was appointed an aviation cadet. Assigned to U.S. Navy Fighting Squadron 3 (VF-3) aboard the aircraft carrier USS Saratoga (CV-3) as an F4F Wildcat fighter pilot in September 1941, he reported to VF-3 while it was stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Ewa in Ewa, Territory of Hawaii, in January 1942 after Saratoga had been damaged by a Japanese submarine torpedo. Later reassigned to Fighting Squadron 2 (VF-2), Ensign Mason's first and only aerial combat occurred during the Battle of the Coral Sea on 8 May 1942, when he disappeared during action with Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft and was declared missing in action, probably the victim of Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighters from the Japanese aircraft carrier Shōkaku. Mason was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his skill and courage in battle.