Date:	Thursday 26 March 1964
Time:	day
Type:	McDonnell Douglas F-4B Phantom II
Owner/operator:	VF-114, US Navy
Registration:	148384
MSN:	69
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	South China Sea, off USS Kitty Hawk (CVA-63) -   Pacific Ocean
Phase:	Approach
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	USS Kitty Hawk (CVA-63), South China Sea
Destination airport:	USS Kitty Hawk (CVA-63), South China Sea
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
McDonnell Douglas F-4B Phantom II Bu No 148384/'405-NH', of VF-114, US Navy: Written off (destroyed) March 23. 1964: Caught fire and crashed into the South China Sea on approach to USS Kitty Hawk (CVA-63). During test flight, explosion was heard in port engine. Aircraft returned to ship and caught fire on approach to carrier,

Pilot, Lt. Cdr. J. R. Moore survived, RIO Lt W. K. Sheenan ejected on approach when aircraft pitched down - never found

According to the ships log: "Kitty Hawk visited Hong Kong 20-26 February 1964 and hosted many visitors aboard the ship. More than 300,000 gallons of fresh water was donated to the British government for use in the drought stricken colony.

In late February, Kitty Hawk headed south again to Taiwan — this time to participate in the amphibious Exercise Back Pack. During the exercise, Vice Admiral J. F. D. Bush, Royal Navy, British Naval Attache to Washington, visited and was given a ride in the F-4B Phantom II jet. As in Big Dipper, Kitty Hawk aircraft provided air support and aerial reconnaissance for the SEVENTH Fleet Marines assaulting the beach.

Following Back Pack, Kitty Hawk spent a week at Sasebo followed by an Easter weekend visit to Buckner Bay, Okinawa". (As a point of reference, the Easter Weekend in 1964 was Friday 27 to Monday 30 March 1964)

The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luzon, Mindoro and Palawan), and in the south by Borneo, eastern Sumatra and the Bangka Belitung Islands,

1. http://thephantomshrine.co.uk/Databases/f4-serials.txt
2. http://forgottenjets.warbirdsresourcegroup.org/F-4.html
3. http://www.joebaugher.com/navy_serials/thirdseries18.html
4. https://web.archive.org/web/20171115212455/http://www.ejection-history.org.uk:80/Aircraft_by_Type/F-4_PHANTOM_USA/f4_phantom_US_1959-1965.htm
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Kitty_Hawk_(CV-63)#1961_to_1964
6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_China_Sea
7. https://www.kittyhawkvets.com/history
8. https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/k/kitty-hawk-cva-63-ii.html
9. https://www.hullnumber.com/CV-63

Two U.S. Navy McDonnell F-4B-6-MC Phantom II (BuNo 148384, 148386) from Fighter Squadron 114 (VF-114) "Aardvarks" in flight. VF-114 was assigned to Attack Carrier Air Wing 11 (CVW-11) aboard the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk (CVA-63) for a deployment to the Western Pacific from 13 September 1962 to 2 April 1963. On 26 March 1964, the F-4B 148384 crashed into the sea after an in-flight fire, while still in service with VF-114.

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
30-Apr-2021 11:15	ASN archive	Added
15-Jun-2022 23:13	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Time, Operator, Other fatalities, Location, Country, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative, Category]
18-Jun-2022 01:44	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Source, Narrative]
18-Jun-2022 01:47	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Narrative]