THOMAS E. MURRAY, LTJG, USN
Thomas Murray '62
Lucky Bag
From the 1962 Lucky Bag:
Thomas Edgar Murray
St. Clair, Missouri
Tom came to the trade school on the Severn after one year at Central College in Missouri. The "Pear" participated enthusiastically in company basketball, soccer, and softball. His winning smile and personality won him a myriad of friends. However, the steam and skinny departments were not included in the amiable number. Although he feels that his future lies in Naval Aviation as a proud wearer of the wings of gold, it is certain that he will become an asset to any branch of the service that he chooses.
He was also a member of the 1st Battalion staff (fall).
Thomas Edgar Murray
St. Clair, Missouri
Tom came to the trade school on the Severn after one year at Central College in Missouri. The "Pear" participated enthusiastically in company basketball, soccer, and softball. His winning smile and personality won him a myriad of friends. However, the steam and skinny departments were not included in the amiable number. Although he feels that his future lies in Naval Aviation as a proud wearer of the wings of gold, it is certain that he will become an asset to any branch of the service that he chooses.
He was also a member of the 1st Battalion staff (fall).
Loss
Tom was lost when he ejected after his A-4C inverted on approach to USS Midway (CVA 41) on October 28, 1965.
From Wall of Faces:
On October, 28 1965, LTJG Thomas E. Murray was KIA when his Douglas A-4C Skyhawk (serial number 148596) crashed astern of the USS Midway after a combat mission. The USS Ingersoll (DD-652) whaleboat recovered the pilot who was pronounced dead by the Ingersoll's medical officer. There is a personal account for this incident from Johnny Hale: “I was flying rescue air crewman onboard the Midway in 1965. I pulled a dead pilot from the water who had ejected on landing. I believe this is the crash of the A-4C 148596 28 October 1965. The pilot's name was LTJG T.E. Murray. He was coming in for a landing, about 200 feet from the water when his plane inverted and he ejected. When I got to him he was face down in the water and with his chute deployed around him. I turned him over on his back and pulled his oxygen mask off and blood was in it. I couldn't get him out of his chute because when I turned him loose he started to sink. His raft popped up and I inflated it, got in and held on to Mr. Murray until a boat from the destroyer got to us. We got him back to the Midway and the doctor told me he had a concussion, crushed chest, and two broken legs. His helmet had a big piece out of it and his visor cover was broken in half.” (Narrative by Johnny Hale) [Taken from a4skyhawk.org]
Other Information
From the Class of 1962:
Ltjg. Thomas Murray died in an aircraft accident in the South China Sea on 28 October 1965. After completing over 100 combat missions with Attack Squadron 22, Task Force 77, Tom was making the carrier approach to USS Midway upon returning from a combat mission when the accident occurred.
Tom's body was recovered and is buried in Midlawn Cemetery in Union, MO.
He is survived by his mother, Mrs. Elizabeth Lay Murray, and a sister, Mary Elizabeth, both of 255 Murray St., St. Clair, MO.
Tom is among those names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.
He has a memorial in Missouri.
Photographs
Related Articles
Geoffrey Osborn '62 was also a member of 1st Company and shares the same Lucky Bag biography page.
Peter Nelson '62 was also on the Wrestling Team.
Memorial Hall Error?
Thomas is not listed on the killed in action panel in the front of Memorial Hall. While not an obvious error, inclusion on the panel for crashes like this—which appears to be incidental to a combat flight—has been inconsistent across WWII, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.
The "category" links below lead to lists of related Honorees; use them to explore further the service and sacrifice of alumni in Memorial Hall.
