@ Pearl Harbor, HI
June 2021
Eight private aircraft were airborne over Oahu at time of the December 7th attack on Pearl Harbor. Attorney and legislator Roy Vitousek, and his teenage son Martin, were flying this Aeronca TC-65 Defender that Sunday morning. Trying to avoid attention, they did come under fire from enemy aircraft and immediately returned to John Rodgers Field (now Honolulu International Airport) with bullet holes in the plane. Of the eight civilian pilots in the air that day, three were shot down, two of whom died. One was forced to bail out, two landed safely, and two pilots went missing and are presumed dead.
The 65TC Defender, a tandem two-seat trainer, was widely used throughout the war, particularly in the Civilian Pilot Training Program. Originally named the Tandem, Aeronca changed the name to Defender when the US entered the war. 154 were built in Middletown, OH. Part of the collection at the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum. Fuji X-Pro2 w/18-135mm.
