Lockheed EC-121H "Super Constellation"

At 1:25AM Eastern Standard Time (EST) on November 11, 1966, EC-121H Serial Number 55-5262, Homey 64, crashed and was destroyed 125 miles east of Nantucket Island, Massachusetts. All 19 crew members aboard the aircraft perished. The aircraft and its crew were assigned to the 961st Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) Squadron, 551st AEW&C Wing and were participating in an active air defense mission over the Atlantic Ocean. The aircraft commander for the flight (Major Robert A. Baird/961st AEW&C Squadron) briefed the crew and completed a normal pre-flight clearance form for the mission. At 1:25AM EST, the 35th Air Division Radar Input Counter Measure Officer lost all contact with Homey 64. The New Bedford fishing boat "Stephen R." reported seeing the aircraft flying low in fog and rain squalls. The aircraft banked steeply to the right, and plunged into the water, nose up, with a fiery explosion. They reported the engines backfiring and emitting smoke. None of the crew members were ever recovered. The deceased crew members include: Major Robert A. Baird/Aircraft Commander, 1Lt Larry D. Rucker/Pilot, 1Lt Richard K. Hoppe/Navigator, 1Lt Edward W. Taylor/Navigator, MSgt Armand H. DiBonavnetura/Flight Engineer, MSgt John J. Nerolich/Flight Engineer, MSgt Clarence D. Hendrickson/Radar Operator, MSgt Robert A. Thibodeau/Radar Operator, TSgt Arthur J. Lambert/Radar Supervisor, SSgt Lawrence E. McNeill/Radar Operator, SSgt James R. Pater/Radar Operator, SSgt Robert J. Simmons/Radar Operator, SSgt Robert Sparks/Radar Technician, A1C Joseph F. Adamick, Jr/Automatic Data Processor Technician, A1C James D. Rogers/Radar Technician, A2C David N. Bailey/Navigation Maintenance Technician, A2C Roger P. Kay/Radar Operator, A2C Larry L. Stoner/Radar Operator, and A2C James D. Wilbur/Automatic Data Processor Technician. Limited Edition. Signed and Numbered by the Artist. See more...