Hanscom Air Force Base – August 8, 1962

Hanscom Air Force Base – August 8, 1962

Bedford, Massachusetts

     On August 8, 1962, a U.S. Air Force KC-135A Strato-Tanker, (Ser. no. 55-3144), crashed and exploded while landing at Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford, Massachusetts.  All three crewmen aboard were killed. 

     They were identified as:

     (Pilot) Captain Clarence E. Kerr, 38, of Beach Grove, Indiana.  He’s buried in Union Chapel Cemetery in St. Paul, Minn.  

     (C0-Pilot) Captain William D. Leng, 30, of Mt. Vernon, New York.  He died two days after his birthday.  He’s buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

     Airman 1st Class Norman E. Ford, age unknown, of Dayton, Ohio. 

     The aircraft was coming from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio.

     Sources:

     Nashua Telegraph, “Hanscom Aircraft Crash Kills 3; Probe Started”, August 9, 1962 

     www.findagrave.com, Memorial #54366385, and 49246665. 

     Aviation Safety Network

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