MICHAEL F. BROWN, LT, USN
Michael Brown '77
Lucky Bag
From the 1977 Lucky Bag:
MICHAEL F. BROWN
Dallas, Texas
"BIG "D" BROWNIE"
Napster
Droop
Validated swimming
Took up sailing instead
Sail-Sail-Sail
Overtime Nine
Youngster Park
Hot-Rod Lincoln
Sailing Club President
Transatlantic Skipper
Good 'ol Boy
Navy Air
MICHAEL F. BROWN
Dallas, Texas
"BIG "D" BROWNIE"
Napster
Droop
Validated swimming
Took up sailing instead
Sail-Sail-Sail
Overtime Nine
Youngster Park
Hot-Rod Lincoln
Sailing Club President
Transatlantic Skipper
Good 'ol Boy
Navy Air
Loss
Michael was lost on August 4, 1982 when the EA-3B Skywarrior he was piloting crashed in the Indian Ocean during a training flight from USS Ranger (CV 61).
From the UPI Archives on August 6, 1982:
MANILA, Philippines -- The U.S. Navy said today it called off the search for six Americans missing and presumed killed when their EA-3B Skywarrior jet crashed in the Indian Ocean during a training flight.
The six crew members of the reconnaissance plane were 'presumed lost at sea,' said a Navy press statement released at the U.S. Subic Bay Naval Base, the 7th Fleet logistics center in the Philippines.
They were identified as Lt. Frank N. Kertscher, 26, of Hopatcong, N.J.; Lt. Michael F. Brown, 28, of Dallas, Texas; Lt. David A. Pies, 26, of Mesa, Ariz.; Petty Officer 2C William B. Snider, 21, of Laxley, Ala.; Petty Officer 2C Brian S. Watson, 23, of Wilmington, Del., and Seaman Terry D. Smith, 19, of Detroit, Mich.
A seventh crew member aboard the Skywarrior was rescued without apparent serious injury, by a helicopter from the aircraft carrier USS Ranger -- from which the ill-fated jet took off on a routine training mission on Wednesday. The survivor was identified by a Navy spokesman on Guam as Petty Officer 2-c Robert L. Huff, 21, Wheaton, Maryland. The spokesman said he was put safely aboard the Ranger and suffered only cuts and bruises.
Ranger, four other Navy ships, and a P-3 Orion long-range patrol aircraft spent 27 hours in scattered showers and overcast skies searching the area where the Skywarrior crashed. The search was abandoned at dusk Thursday after the rescuers found only 'small quantities of scattered debris.'
The Skywarrior, modified to perform electronic warfare missions, was assigned to Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron One based at the naval air station at Agana, Guam.
The cause of the crash was not immediately known and an investigation was under way, the Navy said.
From the Pacific Daily News on August 7, 1982:
The EA-3B jet was on a routine flight from the San Diego-based carrier the USS Ranger southeast of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.
... the jet was flying over open ocean. The 20-year-old jet whose crew has been aboard the Ranger for three months had recently been returned to duty after a scheduled extensive overhaul.
The crash investigation focused on a zero G maneuver performed during flight.
Other Information
Michael was survived by his wife, Kathy, two young sons, and his two sisters, Virginia and Susie.
Michael's Find A Grave page is here.
Photographs
Picture courtesy of his son, Nate
Picture courtesy of his son, Nate
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