The Korean War Veterans Honor Roll
Earl Kenneth Neifer
Rank
Chief Aviation Ordnanceman, U.S. Navy
Unit
USS Essex
Date of Death
September 16, 1951
Chief Aviation Ordnanceman Neifer was a member of the crew of the aircraft carrier USS ESSEX (CV-9). On September 16, 1951, a damaged F-2H Banshee fighter tried to land on the carrier. The tail hook did not engage and the aircraft bounced over the barriers, struck other aircraft and burst into flames. The pilot and six crew members were killed. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.