Date:	Monday 23 April 1945
Time:	09:00
Type:	Grumman TBM-3 Avenger
Owner/operator:	VT-24, US Navy
Registration:	68688
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 3
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Nobara Airfield, Miyako Jima, Sakishima Islands -   Japan
Phase:	Combat
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	USS Santee
Destination airport:

Narrative:
On 23 April 1945, for the third day the escort carriers of TU 52.1.3 (USS Suwannee, Sangamon, Chenango and Santee) attacked Japanese bases in the Sakishima Islands, southeast of Okinawa. This day the target for Santee planes was Miyako Jima and air operations commenced at 0725 hrs and terminated at 1927 hrs.

At 0900 hrs, one of the Santee aircraft, the TBM-3 Buno 68688 of VT-24 was hit by Japanese AA fire during a east west bombing run over Nobara Airfield, Miyako Jima, went down trailing smoke, and exploded on striling the ground east of the airfield. A parchute carrying one man was seen to land between the runways. The three crew, Ens Joseph Francis Florence (pilot), from New York City, AMM3c Richard Joseph Murphy, from Baltimore, and ARM3c Charles Edward Boley, from Holliday Cove, West Virginia, as missing in action.

The man who was seen after baing out was Joseph Florence, who was taken prisoner. He was confined in a jail of the Japanese Army 28th Division HQ stationed in the island, and compelled to perform dangerous works such as removing the un-exploded bombs that were dropped on the Japanese airbase. He was executed by shooting on 11 July, because the staff officer in intelligence of the 28th Division, Lt. Col. Fujio Mutsuro, feared if the US Forces would invade the Island and if they free Ens. Florence, he might inform US Forces of all defense positions of Japanese Army.

After the war, at the War Crimes Trial in Yokohama, Lt. Col. Fujio Mutsuro was sentenced to 35 years confinement, 2/Lt. Okuji Tonomura to 9 years, Sgt. Jirou Takeuchi to 3 years, and Cpl. Kozo Hatano to 3 years.

http://www.cooksontributeb29.com/uploads/5/8/6/5/5865941/b29_fukubayashi.pdf
VT-24 War History (http://www.fold3.com/image/1/302059690/)
USS Santee War Diary, April 1945 (http://www.fold3.com/image/296181841/)
USS Santee Report of air operations in support of the occupation of the Okinawa Gunto, Ryukyu Islands (http://www.fold3.com/image/296116905/)
http://www.aviationarchaeology.com/src/USN/LLApr45.htm
http://stonebooks.com/archives/140323.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miyako-jima
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miyako_Airport
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=fr&lat=24.782778&lon=125.295000&z=12

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
15-Dec-2018 17:57	Laurent Rizzotti	Added