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USN PATROL PLANE PILOT - PEARL HARBOR - MIDWAY - GUADALCANAL - ENGLAND


KASTAUFFER
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With the new movie about the Battle of Midway coming to a screen near you, I thought it would be a good time to highlight the service of this long time Naval Aviator who started his career as an NAP ( Enlisted Pilot) prior to WWII all the way through the 1960s retiring as a Commander.

 

During the early part of WWII he served as a Patrol Plane Commander with VP-23 flying a Catalina during the Attack on Pearl Harbor , The Battle of Midway , Guadalcanal, and doing Anti Sub patrols in Europe.

 

He earned 2 DFCs and a bunch of Air Medals during the war. His first DFC was for an attack on a Japanese Submarine.

 

During the Battle of Midway he rescued one of the downed crews from VB-8 .

 

He left the warm weather in the Pacific to fly PB4Y's ( B-24's) out of Dunkeswill England searching for German subs,

 

He ended his career as a plank owner on the USS Ranger. prior to that he was one of the first pilots to fly Crusaders in 1956.

 

There is a box that weighs over 100 pounds with his all of the paperwork and material he accumulated during his career. I am only going to show a portion here.

 

The pictures tell his story.

 

 

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lastly the document that represents to me, his span of service. He flew everything from Bi-planes , to Jets, in this case a Crusader .

 

014eff6148e8392e57269b7dffaabc4fdeaa7fb27b.jpg

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After he retired he was very active in veterans groups and also the Battle of Midway History Round Table.

 

He remained active until his death in 2007.

 

This thread is dedicated to the veterans of the Battle of Midway and to all veterans who will be remembered this year on November 11th.

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Kurt,

Based on what you have unearthed so far, this is one fantastic group that belonged to a very lucky pilot. Having come up through the ranks beginning as an enlisted pilot who survived the Pearl Harbor attack while flying a Cataline, a slow boat with wings. He then served in the Pacific flying two decisive campaigns of 1942, still flying a Catalina; he landed and rescued a downed aircrew on the high seas in the Battle of Midway, followed by attacking an enemy sub near Guadal Canal while under fire. Besides being a competent pilot, he led a charmed life before transitioning to PB4Y's and flying out of England looking for German Subs in the Atlantic. He could have easily had a mishap in the weather along the transport routes that suppled troops and material to England and Europe.

I look forward to reading what else you learn about this man, who had some big balls, continued accomplishments during World War Two, and the rest of his career as a naval aviator. Thanks for posting.

John

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