4 April 1942 - Crash of a Kittyhawk at 34 Mile Strip, NT

On 4 April 1942, 2nd Lt. Lieutenant John Dick Livingstone Jr., a native of Clarksburg WV, USA of the 9 Pursuit Squadron of the 49th Fighter Group was killed in action at 34 Mile Strip in the Northern Territory when his P-40 Kittyhawk crashed.

34 Mile Strip was later renamed as Livingstone Field in memory of Lt. Livingstone who was the first pilot killed at 34 Mile Strip.

C. Rossi told me that his neighbour Mr. John Doran was serving in an anti aircraft battery at RAAF Field Darwin, on the 4 April 1942 during a Japanese bombing raid on Darwin. He advised that two Japanese Zero's strafed the RAAF airfield as they headed north. A minute or two later a P-40 Kittyhawk flew over the air field heading south. One gun opened fire, which immediately brought many guns firing at the P-40. John Doran presumed that the pilot, Lt. Livingstone, was hit for he was able to fly to 34 Mile strip, but crashed while trying to land.

Transcription by Edward Rogers of letter from father of Lt. John D. Livingstone
to CO of 9th Pursuit Squadron, Capt. James. C. Selman dated 30 June 1942.

"Clarksburg, West Virginia
June 30, 1942

Captain James C. Selman
O-388640 9 Fr Sq. 49 Group
A.P.O. 921 C/O Postmaster
San Francisco, California

Dear Captain Selman,

Your letter postmarked April 16, 1942 was received June 9, 1942. This is the only information we have received of our son John's death with the exception of a telegram we received from the government in Washington received April 8 stating our son Lt. John Dick Livingstone was killed in action in defense of his country on April 4, 1942 in the far Eastern Theater - we also had a letter confirming this telegram.

Captain Selman, words cannot express our thanks and appreciation to you for writing to us giving us first hand information [about?] our son's death. We also wish to thank you for the piece of poetry enclosed with your letter telling us of the squadron action before and after the attack.

Would you be kind enough to write or cable us at our expense if our son John's body was recovered as ____ this sacrifice is hard to bear. We are anxious to know the truth and are hoping our boys body was recovered and if so where is he buried? If we must face the worst we will try and be brave and take it. It is a consolation to know our son was a credit to his squadron and that he died as a soldier and an American.

We had three children, one girl and two boys, our daughter Mary is two years older than John and his brother Stanley is two years younger. Stanley is serving in the Navy. John was familiarly known among his boy and girl friends as Johnny. I had such a severe heart attack last August and have been confined to our home ever since.

Captain I do not wish to burden you with our ____s as I know you have any urgent problems to handle[?] but I do not know to whom I can write to get the information of our son's death. Could you give me the names and addresses of two or three of John's closest companions to whom I might write. We do not know the names of ___________ one of John's associates who went to Australia with him."

John sent us three telegrams from Australia and telephoned to us twice. It was a joy to talk to him in Australia and to hear his voice once again over the telephone. No parents ever reared a finer boy than John, he never even gave his mother or I any trouble. He was always kind and considerate for his parents.

I am afraid I am tiring you with this long letter. I wanted to answer your letter earlier but since I have been ill writing is a hard task for me. In the future I shall try and make my letters more brief.

Mrs. Livingstone joins me in again thanking you kindly for writing to us. I hope you can find time to write and give us any additional information ____ _____ of our boys death.

Yours sincerely,

Mr. & Mrs. John L. Livingstone Sr.
409 South
Clarksburg
W Va. U.S.A.

I'd like to thank Edward Rogers, Darlene Taylor-Morgan and C. Ross for their assistance with this web page.