Rockland, MA. – October 2, 1956

Rockland, Massachusetts – October 2, 1956   

U.S. Navy
Grumman F9F Panther
U.S. Navy Photo – National Archives

     On October 2, 1956, navy Lieutenant  (Jg.) Donald R. Good, (27), of Natick, Massachusetts, perished when the Grumman F9F fighter jet he was piloting crashed and burned in a sandpit near Summer Street in Rockland.  The aircraft had narrowly missed a row of houses and clipped some trees prior to the crash.  Lt. Good did not eject, and instead stayed with the aircraft due to being over a populated area.  He’d been stationed at the South Waymouth Naval Air Station.  

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/204950863/donald-ray-good

     Sources:

      The Boston Globe, “Natick Pilot Dies At Rockland – Navy Board Opens Probe In Fatal Jet Plane Crash”, October 3, 1956.  Article submitted by Eric Wiberg, author and historian. 

     Aviation Safety Network

Rockland, MA. – August 24, 1978

     Rockland, Massachusetts – August 24, 1978

     At 11:05 a.m., on August 23, 1978, a twin-engine, U.S. Navy, US-2B aircraft, was beginning its landing approach to the South Weymouth Naval Air Station when it crashed in  a wooded area off Spring Street in Rockland.  The accident took place within 200 yards of a shopping plaza and large apartment complex.  There were no injuries to anyone on the ground.

     Both men aboard the plane were killed.  They were identified as:

     Commander Albert Bailey, Jr., 39, of Weymouth, Massachusetts.

     Lieutenant Commander Kenneth Marriott, Jr., 35, of Hanson, Massachusetts.  

     Sources:

     Westerly Sun, (R.I.), “Navy Plane Crashes In Hub Suburb”, August 24, 1978, page 2.

     Providence Evening Bulletin, “Navy Fliers Are Killed”, August 25, 1978, Page C-1.

 

Return to Top ▲Return to Top ▲