Lt. Jg. Kenneth B. McQuady Memorial

Lt. Jg. Kenneth B. McQuady Memorial

Quonset Air Museum

     Lt. Jg. McQuady was killed on March 2, 1945, when his F6F Hellcat crashed on takeoff from Charlestown Auxiliary Air Field in Charlestown, Rhode Island.   The propeller from his Hellcat was donated to the Quonset Air Museum in his memory.  

Note:  The Quonset Air Museum has permanently closed, and the propeller was moved to Ninigret Park in Charlestown.  

For more information about this accident click here:  Charlestown – March 2, 1945 

Quonset Air Museum Memorial to Lt. Jg. Kenneth Bruce McQuady

Quonset Air Museum Memorial to Lt. Jg. Kenneth Bruce McQuady

Description of accident that killed Lt. McQuady

Description of accident that killed Lt. McQuady

 

 

Charlestown, R.I. – March 2, 1945

Charlestown, Rhode Island – March 2, 1945 

Charlestown Auxiliary Naval Air Field

     Updated July 13, 2017

U.S. Navy F6F Hellcat
U.S. Navy photo

     At 11:15 p.m. on March 2, 1945, Lt. (jg.) Kenneth B. McQuady, age 21, took off from Charlestown Auxiliary Naval Air Station in an F6F-5N Hellcat, (Bu. No. 71418,) for a night training flight.  Just after he became airborne, his aircraft was seen to lose altitude and crash on the ice covered water of Charlestown Pond at the end of Runway 22.  Upon impact the belly tank ruptured and caught fire.  The plane bounced another 100 yards before coming to rest.   Lt. McQuady received fatal injuries.

     Lt. McQuady is buried in Wildwood Cemetery in Bartow, Florida.

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/37759116/kenneth-bruce-mcquady

     The propeller from Lieutenant McQuady’s Hellcat was recovered years after his accident and presented to the Quonset Air Museum and made into a memorial.     

Quonset Air Museum Memorial to Lt. Jg. Kenneth Bruce McQuady

Description of accident that killed Lt. McQuady

     Unfortunately, since this original posting, the Quonset Air Museum has closed.

     Sources:

     Quonset Air Museum 

     U.S. Navy Accident Report dated March 2, 1945

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