Daniel T . Griffin Daniel Thornburg Griffin ( 25 March 1911 – 7 December 1941 ) was an American naval pilot who died defending the Naval Air Station , Kaneohe Bay during the 7 December 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor . Early life . Daniel T . Griffin was born on March 25 , 1911 in Allendale , IL to the Reverend Pearl D . Griffin and his wife Pernia . Pearl was a traveling minister and moved the family from town to town until they settled in Colorado Springs , CO . Growing up , Daniel enjoyed the hunting and fishing that the Colorado Springs area provided . During his last several years of school , he was employed with the Gazette & Telegraph Co . in Colorado Springs . Naval career . At 19 years old , Daniel decided to enlist in the United States Navy . His enlistment began on October 6 , 1930 where he was assigned to complete his basic training at the Naval Training Station in San Diego , CA . Following basic training , Daniel went on to served aboard the USS California , USS Tennessee , and USS Saratoga . During his career , Daniel decided he wanted to become a pilot . He began ground training at Naval Air Station Pensacola in 1936 , and in reported to flight school in 1937 . Daniel graduated in February 1938 as an AMM2C “ NAP ” Naval Aviation Pilot . Shortly after receiving his PBY pilot ’ s license , Daniel was transferred to Pearl Harbor and served with PBY Patrol Squadron 8 , then later with PBY Patrol Squadron 24 at Ford Island . When his plane , along with other planes and crews from PBY Patrol Squadron 24 , were transferred to Kaneohe Bay in March 1941 , PBY Patrol Squadron 24 was re - designated as VP - 12 . He re - enlisted in October 1941 . December 7th , 1941 . On the morning of December 7 , 1941 , Daniel was standing routine watch at Kaneohe Naval Air Station . His PBY was at the ready ; sitting in the bay with two of the four crew members already on board . When Daniel saw the Japanese planes approaching the base , he realized that they were not from the United States military . Daniel called out to the crew members on board the plane to start the engines as he began to swim out to the PBY . Daniel settled into the pilot ' s seat and began to taxi the plane for takeoff . Daniel ’ s PBY was hit by Japanese gunfire just as he became airborne . It caught fire and sank in Kaneohe Bay where , according to the University of Hawaii and East Carolina University , it still rests today . Daniel was badly burned but managed to escape the plane and attempt to swim back to shore . The Japanese planes continued strafing the Kaneohe Bay waters with machine gunfire . Daniel sustained a bullet wound to the head which entered on the right side behind his ear and exited on the left side of his face , killing him instantly . It is believed that Daniel was the first serviceman to die at Kaneohe Bay that day . Daniel ' s wife , Lucille , having seen his plane taxiing down the bay and later on fire , didn ’ t know if her husband had survived . On December 12 , the Kaneohe police called the base to report that a body had washed ashore . Daniel T . Griffin was identified and pronounced dead . Daniel was buried in a temporary grave on the north shore of Kaneohe Island with several other servicemen who perished during the attack . His body was later exhumed and reinterred at a cemetery in Colorado Springs , CO . His commission to ensign arrived at the base two weeks after his death . Daniel ' s wife Lucille later received a Letter of Citation from Admiral Chester Nimitz citing the bravery of Daniel ’ s actions with utter disregard for his personal welfare . Personal life . Daniel was married to Lucille , and together they were raising their 2 children ( Danelle and Donald ) in the military housing at Kaneohe Bay Naval Air Station . During the attacks on December 7 , Lucille placed her infant son Donald in a storage area just inside the house , where she hoped he would be safe . She ran to retrieve her daughter Danelle who was playing outside . Lucille watched in terror as Daniel ’ s plane taxied down the bay and turned to head into the wind . Moments later , she saw smoke and fire everywhere . A bomb had hit near the Griffin house and when she retrieved little Donald from storage , he had a small amount of blood coming from his ears as a result of the concussion caused by the bomb hitting so close to his shelter . He also sustained damage to his optic nerve , which required 3 eye surgeries in Donald ’ s childhood . Following Daniel ' s burial , Lucille and the children moved back to the mainland . USS Daniel T Griffin . On February 5 , 1943 , Lucille had the honor of christening the destroyer escort USS " Daniel T . Griffin " ( DE - 54 ) . The Daniel T . Griffin survived three kamikaze attacks during the war and many battles . It stayed in the United States naval fleet until 1966 when it was purchased by the Chilean government . It was decommissioned in 1994 , and used one last time as a training target and sunk . It now rests in the waters off Talcahuano , Chile . See also . Official Report on Attack at Kaneohe USS Daniel T Griffin USS Daniel T Griffin Pearl Griffin Obituary Burials at Kaneohe Bay Memorial to the fallen NAS Kaneohe 1941 Military photos from attack on Kaneohe Bay 1941 ECU Article on wreckage