AW3 Michael A. Silvers VP-17  P-3B BUNO: 152159 08/03/70 Weaverville, Calif

Navy Times, August 19, 1970:
SEARCHLIGHT, Nev.--Ten Navy men were killed August 3 when their antisubmarine warfare plane exploded in flight during a storm. The crewmen, assigned to Patrol Squadron 17, were headed for Barbers Point, Hawaii by way of North Island Naval Air Station in San Diego.
Killed were Lt. Timothy D. Bailing, Lt. Norman L. Johnson, Lt. (jg) Henry J. McGreevey, Aviation ASW Operator Third John D. Maas, Aviation Electronics Technician Third Cletus L. Morrison, Aviation Machinist's Mate First Ambrose Ordonia Jr., Aviation ASW Operator Third John W. Schmitz IV, Aviation Machinist's Mate First Johnny D. Shelton, Aviation ASW Operator Third Michael A. Silvers and Aviation ASW Operator Third Bruce E. Weaver.

Star-Bulletin:
Navy Gives More Details of Crash that Killed 10
Star-Bulletin Writer
By Lyle Nelson
August 3rd, 1970
The Navy said yesterday that the plane from NAS Barbers Point, Hawaii that crashed in Nevada Monday killing 10 was serving as a "backup" plane for Adm. John J. Hyland, Pacific Fleet commander.
But today a spokesman for Hyland said the P3-A Orion's 'backup" status was coincidental and that the primary purpose of the flight to Nevada was for navigational training.
Hyland was in San Diego over the weekend to attend a ceremonial function, the changing of command of the 1st Fleet headquartered in San Diego.
The Barbers Point plane flew a cross country training mission to Nellis Air Force Base, Nev.
It was returning to San Diego for a night flight to Barbers Point when the crash occurred. The antisubmarine warfare plane apparently was struck by lightning.
The Navy said the Barbers Point plane, which is specially built to track submarines, was flown to Nevada to give the crew cross-country navigational training.
Such training is not available in the Islands.
Antisubmarine aircraft from Barbers Point are deployed continually to the Aleutians, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Southeast Asia for coastal operations near mountainous terrain.
Another reason for the trip to San Diego, a spokesman said, was to drop off naval personnel planning to attend special schools located in the San Diego area.
Four members of the crew had families living in Hawaii. The crash made 10 children fatherless.
The Navy identified the crew as:
LT Timothy D. Bailing Pilot New Kensington, Pa.
LT(jg) Henry J. McGreevey Copilot Newark, Ohio
His wife Rose lives in Waipahu
LT Norman L. Johnson Navigator Quipnesec, Mich.
His wife Susan and two daughters live in Ewa Beach
1. C. Ambrose Ordonia Aviation Mechanic San Francisco
His wife Annette, two sons and two daughters live at Ewa Beach
1. C. Johnny D. Shelton Aviation Mechanic Shugu-alak, Miss
His wife Frances, three daughters and a son live at Ewa Beach

Third Class Petty Officers Electronic Technicians and ASW Operators:
Bruce E. Weaver Coral Gables, Fla
Cletus L. Morrison Union City, Okla
John W. Schmitz IV Madera, Calif
John D. Maas North of Minneapolis
Michael A. Silvers Weaverville, Calif

It fell to three chaplains on the base to break the news to wives of the lost fliers.

Right behind the chaplains came Cmdr. Robert May, commanding officer Patrol Squadron 17, and other close friends.
The P3-A antisubmarine warfare aircraft that crashed was one of nine in May's squadron.
"It was a bad night," said May solemnly after going through the procedure of notifying the families here.
It was an experienced crew, May said, although McGreevey was fairly new to the squadron.
For a while May and other Navy officials at NAS Barbers Point, Hawaii were unsure that the crashed plane came from the base.
But they knew they had an aircraft in that vicinity and befoe long they had enough information checked out to know it must have been the plane flown by Bailing.
"We made sure the wives would not be left alone and that the children were taken care of," May said. "Some of the children were quite small."

10 Die in Crash of Isle-Based Plane
August 3rd, 1970
SEARCHLIGHT, Nev. (AP) - Ten Hawaii-based Navy men died when, witnesses said, a bolt of lightning apparently shattered their antisubmarine patrol plane and sent it raining in fiery pieces onto a rocky ridge near here.
The P-3B patrol plane stationed at NAS Barbers Point, Hawaii, was on a training flight yesterday with its crew of three officers and seven enlisted men.
The Navy today released the names of the four victims whose families live here. They are:
Lt Norman L. Johnson, 29, of Quinnessec, Mich., whose wife, Susan, lives at 5678 Dovekie Ave., Ewa Beach.
Lt. (j.g.) Henry J. McGreevey, 25, of Newark, O. His wife, Rose, lives in the Royal Poinciana Apartments in Waipahu.
Jet Mechanic 1.C Johnny Shelton, 37, of Sugualak, Miss. His wife, Frances, lives at 6252A Ibis Ave., Ewa Beach.
The plane was about 50 miles south of Las Vegas on a flight from Nellis Air Force Base near Las Vegas to the North Island Naval Air Station in San Diego when it entered an area of thunderstorm activity.
"I saw a flash of lightning in a black cloud and then saw this burning debris fall out of the clouds," said Harvry Swan, a resident of the southern Nevada desert hamlet.
A power company lineman, Beryl Jarvis, said his eye was drawn to the plane by a flash of light.
"It looked like it was hit by lightning" said Jarvis. "It went down in pieces. When it hit the ground, there was a big ball of fire and a big puff of smoke. That was all."
Sheriff's deputies said the remains of the four-engine turbo-prop plane was spread over about a half mile of rugged ridge line. Despite on-and-off rain, parts of the plane were still burning three hours later.
Air Force authorities at Nellis said there would be an investigation to establish the cause of the crash, but first indications supported the reports that it was struck by lightning.

Barbers Point Mourns Loss
Memorial services will be held at 10 a.m. today in the station chapel for the ten men of Patrol Squadron 17 who lost their lives Monday when their P-3A Orion crashed near a small town in Nevada while on a routine navigation training flight.
Taking off from Nellis Air Force Base, the plane was enroute to North Island Naval Air Station in San Diego when it entered into an area of thunderstorm activity.
Eyewitness Report
Eyewitnesses report that they saw a flash of lightning in a dark cloud then burning debris falling to the ground.
The wreckage, which was strewn over a quarter mile area in hilly terrain smouldered for more than three hours after the crash.
Lt. Timothy D. Bailing
Pilot of the plane was Lt. Timothy D. Bailing of New Kensignton, Pa. A graduate of Penn State University, he received his commission in 1966 and was designated a Naval Aviator in 1967. A member of VP-17 since May 1968, Bailing was patrol plane commander of Crew Nine and Squadron NATOPS Officer. Under his leadership the squadron attained an overall score of more than 86 percent on their NATOPS testing last week.

Lt. Henry J. McGreevey
Navigator for the flight was Lt. Henry J. McGreevey of Newark, Ohio whose wife Tracey was staying at the Royal Poiciana Hotel in Waipahu. A Naval Academy graduate who was active in sports, McGreevey reported to the squadron in June of this year. The Classified Material Control Officer had previously been selected for lieutenant and posthumously promoted.

Lt. Norman L. Johnson
Lt. Norman L. Johnson of Quinnessec, Michigan, was a Tactical Coordinator and Assistant Administrative Officer for the Squadron. He had been with the squadron since December 1968. His wife Susan and daughters, Jill, 5, and Nancy Lisa, 3, live at Iroquois Point. Johnson was a graduate of Michigan Technological College.

ADJ1 Ambrose Ordonia
ADJ1 Ambrose Ordonia, whose mother resides in San Francisco, joined VP-17 in April 1969. His wife Annette, and fourt children, Wanda, 11, Steven, 10, Tracy, 8, and Andrew 5, live in Iroquois Point.

ADJ1 Johnny D. Shelton
ADJ1 Johnny D. Shelton, a native of Chester, Miss., reported to the squadron in May 1970. His wife, Frances, and four children, Cathy, 15, Ann, 12, Nancy, 7, and Darren, 1, reside in Iroquois Point.

AW3 John W. Schmitz
AW3 John W. Schmitz, IV, of Madera, Calif., joined VP-17 in May of this year. He attended Fresno State College before entering the Navy and was an avid sportsman.

AW3 Bruce E. Weaver
AW3 Bruce E. Weaver, a native of Englewood, N.J. came to VP-17 in November 1969. He was a graduate of Vanderbilt University.

ATN3 Cletus L. Morrison
ATN3 Cletus L. Morrison, a native of El Reno, Oklahoma, jointed VP-17 in November 1969. Before entering the Navy he attended Oklahoma State University.

AW3 Michael A. Silvers
AW3 Michael A. Silvers, a native of Oakland, Calif., joint VP-17 in June of this year. Prior to entering the Navy, he attended the University of Idaho.

AW3 John D. Maas
AW3 John D. Maas, a native of Minneapolis, Minn., came to VP-17 in May of 1969. He was an avid sportsmen who excelled in baseball in high school.