Dibble Manly Rickenbaker

Graduating Class
1944

Major
Agriculture

Hometown
Summerton, SC

Family
Parents - Mr. and Mrs. M. W. Rickenbaker

Service & Rank
Army Air Force, Sgt

Unit
528 Ftr Sq, 35 Ftr Gp

Birth Year
1919

Date of Death
Jul 9, 1943

Details of Death
Died non Battle - Died in a training flight in California.

Burial Details
Gravestone marker, St. Marks Episcopal Church, Clarendon County, SC

Barrow Stone Location
NW

Additional Information

Accident report # 44-79-15

Aircraft Model: BT-13A,; S/N 41-21275

Organization:

Location: Lemoore, CA

Group: 35^th FTW; Squadron: 528^th BFT

Place of Departure: Lemoore, CA

Target or intended destination: local

Type of Mission: Routine personal proficiency flight

Date: 9 July 1943; Time: 14:15

Location of Crash: 8 mi. W of Riverdale, CA

Reason aircraft was Lost: Control lost in spin

Number of Persons aboard aircraft: 2

List of Crew (Crew position, Name, Rank, Status)

Pilot-Ellis, Ralph Russel: 2^nd Lt., fatal.

Passenger-Rickenbaker, Dibble M. Sgt., Fatal

Narrative of eyewitness statements:

Departing from Lemoore, CA, the BT-13A was due to carry out a routine personal proficiency flight.
A witness to the accident stated that the plane went into a spin from a medium altitude while flying straight and going fairly slow. The pilot was unable to recover control and the plane made 9 or 10 more turns before crashing into the ground.
The plane was found about 8 miles west of the town of Riverdale, California.

Dibble’s brother Tourie, Clemson Class of 1943, died in Germany, February 25, 1945.

The State, 7/11/1943, p2A