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Remember...Harry Benton Kesler
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Harry Benton Kesler was born July 6, 1918, in Lowell, Summers County, West Virginia, to Kenton Jenks Kesler and Carmen E. Allen Kesler. The Keslers had three children who did not live to adulthood: Virginia (1907), Robert Lee (1909-1912), and Dan (1916). Harry did, however, have two sisters: Lena Evelyn (Mrs. Celeste Pittino) and Mattie Dean (Mrs. John George). (Family information from death notice; 1930, 1940, and 1950 Federal Census documents; and Rebecca Bragg Family Tree on Ancestry.com). On August 9, 1940, he married America Wilson Plymal [sometimes spelled Plymale], and they had a son, also named Harry.
A distinguished Air Force pilot of World War II, First Lieutenant Kesler was one of the unfortunate airmen killed non-battle during the Korean War when their Air National Guard plane crashed on approach to the Kanawha Airport on April 8, 1951. Harry was the co-pilot.
According to a death notice in The Leader ("Lt. Kesler's Rites Set Wednesday," Hinton, WV, 12 April 1951), Kesler was born and raised in Lowell and was a graduate of Talcott High School, class of 1935. He attended West Virginia Institute of Technology at Montgomery and graduated in 1940 with a B.S. in chemistry. He had been employed as a chemist at the Dupont plant at Charleston [Belle]. He was highly regarded in his community and made friends easily. A former teacher at Talcott High School described him as "a young man of unusual ability and anxious to secure knowledge. He was also an acknowledged leader, but was unassuming in his daily life."
Harry had served admirably as a transport pilot in World War II, having flown many missions over "The Hump" between India and China. His initial training was in Texas, and he received advanced training in England for transport flying. He was jointly commissioned in the American Air Force and the Royal Air Force. According to Syd Edwards, a historian who has been documenting the 1951 C-47 crash near the Kanawha Airport, Lt. Kesler was a co-pilot in Douglas C-54 Skymasters while serving in the China-Burma-India Theater.
Co-pilot Kesler, like the C-47 pilot, Edwin Whittington, was a veteran of the Air Transport Command in World War II. Dallas Higbee, of the Charleston Gazette, writes: "His love for flying was so great that he refused to give up his pilot's rating despite the fact that a steel brace held his back rigid. He was severely injured in an automobile accident after joining the squadron at its inception. The handicap of his back did not impair his skill as a flier, superior officers said." ("National Guard Plane Crash," 9 April 1951.)
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World War II was just one chapter in the story of Harry Benton Kesler. After his service in World War II, he returned to civilian life as a chemist at Dupont. However, as with many of his comrades-in-arms, the Korean War called them back to service, and Harry found himself in the 167th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 123rd Fighter Bomber Wing, stationed at Godman Air Force Base in Kentucky, awaiting orders to enter the conflict. Lieutenant Kesler had the misfortune of being the copilot on the ill-fated C-47 transport plane that crashed on approach to the Charleston Airport on April 8, 1951. The crashed C-47 was one of two that were traveling from Godman Air Force base in Kentucky to attend the funeral of Woodford Sutherland, a colleague who had been killed in a training accident in Florida just three days earlier. |
Much has been written locally about the crash and its aftermath—the Charleston Gazette and Daily Mail offered timely coverage of the event and its aftermath, and other newspapers around the state followed suit. In a practice no longer familiar, newspapers often published an "extra," which allowed for frequent updates on breaking news. The following account, however, is excerpted from the actual accident report:
After reporting over the Charleston Radio Range at 5000 feet on an IFR flight from Godman Air Force Base, Kentucky to Charleston, West Virginia, the pilot was cleared by Charleston Approach Control to descent to 3500 feet, pending approach clearance. . . . [The pilot then indicated a turn procedure.] The procedure turn report was the last radio contact with the aircraft.The C-47 crashed into a hill approximately 1150 feet high located 4.6 miles from the approach end of runway 23 at Kanawha County Airport and 1.07 miles West Northwest of the Outer Marker beacon. Both wings of the aircraft were sheared off on impact by trees. The fuselage came to rest approximately 125 yards from the point of impact and was almost completely consumed by the fire which apparently was instantaneous with collision. . . .
One of the two survivors of the crash was a rated pilot riding as passenger who succumbed to burn injuries within less than 24 hours. The other survivor lived for approximately one week after the crash. The statements of the survivors indicate that they were positioned further aft in the plane than any of the other passengers and it is worthy of note that one of the survivors stated that to the best of his knowledge all the rest of the passengers who suffered fatal injuries had their safety belts fastened. . . .
[Here the report provides numerous technical details regarding the approach pattern and describes the condition of the aircraft on impact, concluding that the damage made the cause of the crash difficulty to determine.]
The report continues:
The fact that both survivors reported seeing the airport a short time before the crash lends credence to the belief that the pilot misread the altimeter and was actually flying at 1300 feet indicated when he reported being at 2300 outbound over the inner locator at 1132C. This altitude would put the aircraft below the 1000 foot overcast and above the 500 foot broken ceiling which would enable the passengers to get a glimpse of the airport through the broken cloud layer.The time lapse of only 2 minutes from the position over the inner located outbound until the procedure report further suggests the actions of this pilot in setting up his approach were distinctly hurried. One wrist watch found in the wreckage was stopped at 1136C, so the time of the accident is assumed as between 1135C and 1136.
While the failure of the ILS equipment might be considered as conducive to the accident, the pilot was aware of the malfunction and planned to make his approach independently of this system. It does not appear therefore that this failure should be considered as a direct cause factor. (Report of AF Aircraft Accident, West Virginia State Archives.)
Another group of airmen traveled in a separate plane, but upon notification of the crash, they returned to Godman. A joint memorial service for the West Virginia casualties was held at the Municipal Auditorium in Charleston.
| Lt. Kesler was a highly decorated veteran of World War II, having earned the Air Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, Distinguished Flying Cross, Asiatic-Pacific Service Medal, World War II Victory Medal, and the Philippine Liberation Medal. He is buried in Cunningham Memorial Park in St. Albans, Kanawha County, West Virginia. |  |
Article prepared by Patricia Richards McClure, who gratefully acknowledges the assistance of historian Syd Edwards, who has been researching the C-47 crash for many years
May 2024
West Virginia Archives and History welcomes any additional information that can be provided about these veterans, including photographs, family names, letters and other relevant personal history.
