Horace A. Bass Jr.

Horace Ancel Bass Jr. (1915–1942) was a United States Navy officer and pilot who received the Navy Cross for his actions at the Battle of Midway in June 1942.

Bass was born in Roanoke, Virginia on 22 September 1915, and enlisted in the U.S. Navy on 24 February 1941. In May 1941 he was designated an "aviation cadet" and after aviation training was appointed ensign on 5 December 1941. He underwent further flight training and reported to the aircraft carrier USS Saratoga (CV-3) in early 1942. Bass was assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown (CV-5) during the pivotal Battle of Midway; he flew as part of the combat air patrol on 4 June 1942. During the battle, he shot down an attacking Japanese dive bomber and a fighter. For his part in the battle Bass was awarded the Navy Cross. Assigned to Fighting Squadron 5 on the USS Saratoga, Bass flew combat air patrol during the Battle of the Eastern Solomons (23–25 August 1942), during which he was shot down and reported missing in action. He was presumed dead on 24 August 1942.

The high-speed transport USS Horace A. Bass (APD-124), later LPR-124, in service from 1944 until 1969, was named for him.

References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here. (ship namesake paragraph)