For the last couple of years I have been researching a family
project that involved a Navy plane that crashed on April 13, 1945,
killing both the pilot, Ens. Raymond Green and the radioman, Donald
Alan Wattenbarger.
Editor,
For the last couple of years I have been researching a family project that involved a Navy plane that crashed on April 13, 1945, killing both the pilot, Ens. Raymond Green and the radioman, Donald Alan Wattenbarger. Donald Wattenbarger was my uncle, whom I never knew as I was born in 1953. The type of plane was an SBD-5 Douglas Dauntless that my uncle and his pilot were taking on a routine training flight from Hollister Airfield to Salinas airport. I did manage to get a copy of the original official Navy accident report, and it stated that according to the Chief Radio Technician at the time at Hollister Airfield, the plane flew to an altitude of three to four thousand feet, then nose-dived into the side of a hill about 10 miles from the airport. Later I was able to find the newspaper article from that day. It did say that the plane crash happened near the cross on Pagan Hill. That cross is the on visible on the left going into San Juan Bautista on Hwy. 156 from Hollister.
I was able to get permission from the property owner where Pagan Hill is located, to go and look around, but of course after 50 years of weather and cattle grazing, there was no evidence of a crash, even a nose-dive. I might have even been looking in the wrong area.
My question to anyone reading this is if you know anything about exactly where the plane crashed, or even if you just happened to know my uncle, if you would contact the Free Lance and they may contact me. Any type of information would be greatly appreciated.
Lorie Setterberg, Mariposa
