Richard E . Ellsworth Brigadier General Richard Elmer Ellsworth ( July 18 , 1911 – March 18 , 1953 ) was a United States Air Force commander during the early part of the Cold War . Ellsworth Air Force Base near Rapid City , South Dakota is named in his honor . Early life . Born in Erie , Pennsylvania , Ellsworth joined the Pennsylvania National Guard in 1929 . In 1931 he was accepted into the U . S . Military Academy and after graduation , studied pilot training at Randolph and Kelly fields in Texas . Ellsworth was assigned to squadron duties in October 1936 at Mitchel Field in New York . The army promoted him to first lieutenant in June 1938 and transferred him back to Kelly Field and later to the Sacramento Air Depot in California . He spent time studying meteorology at the California Institute of Technology , graduating with a master ' s degree . He received promotion to captain in October 1940 . By December 1941 , Ellsworth was a major and by February 1942 a lieutenant colonel . World War II . In the spring of 1942 , Ellsworth was re - assigned to transport pilot duty in Alaska . Later that year , he was sent to study weather - related phenomena in the South Pacific , where he was promoted to full colonel in December . Beginning in July 1943 , as commander of the Tenth Weather Region , he flew more than 400 combat missions in the China - Burma - India Theater , logging a total of 780 hours for the 10th and 14th Air Forces . For his heroics , he received battle star s for eight different campaigns , and further distinguished himself earning the Legion of Merit , two Distinguished Flying Crosses , three Air Medal s , and even the Chinese Air Force Wings . Cold War . After the war , Ellsworth returned stateside for reassignment as Chief of Operations and Training for the Air Weather Service in Washington . He later commanded the 308th Reconnaissance Group at Morrison Field , Florida as well as the Fairfield - Suisun Air Force Base of California . In July 1950 , Ellsworth graduated from the Air War College at Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama and was reassigned Chief of Plans for the 2nd Air Force at Barksdale Air Force Base , Louisiana . Colonel Ellsworth was assigned as the wing commander 28th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Rapid City AFB South Dakota in 1950 . In September 1952 he received promotion to the rank of brigadier general . Retired squadron maintenance officers at the base remember Ellsworth as an unusual , hands - on commander , who would sometimes assist mechanics working late into the night in efforts to ready aircraft . In the early 1950s , Ellsworth befriended Hollywood producer Herman Cohen during the filming of " Battles of Chief Pontiac . " The picture was shot on - location in western South Dakota , using Lakota Indians from a nearby reservation to portray the Native Americans . General Ellsworth allowed personnel from the base to act as extras in the film , portraying British and Hessian troops . Ellsworth sent out Air Force water trucks to assist the production crew . General Ellsworth ' s three sons were allowed to visit the set and meet the actors . Death . On March 18 , 1953 , Ellsworth was co - piloting an American Convair RB - 36H Peacemaker bomber on a 25 - hour journey as part of a simulated combat mission flying from Lajes , Azores back to the Rapid City base . As part of their exercise , the bomber was observing radio silence and had switched off their radar guidance , flying via celestial navigation . They had planned to fly low over the ocean , steadily increasing to higher altitudes before reaching the mountainous countryside of Newfoundland . Late into the night , the aircraft struck bad weather and went off course , reaching Newfoundland 90 minutes earlier than planned . At 4 : 10 am at a hill near Burgoyne ' s Cove , inland from Nut Cove , Trinity Bay , Newfoundland , with sleet , fog , freezing drizzle , and visibility estimated at less than , the plane struck an 896 - foot hill at 800 feet with a ground speed of 202 knots . The aircraft ' s propellers severed the tops of pine trees while the plane ' s left wing hit the ground , tore off , and spilled fuel . The rest of the plane impacted some thousand feet further . The impact and subsequent fire from the plane ' s fuel tanks scorched an trench in the countryside . Loggers on a nearby hill spotted the fireball and alerted rescuers , but all 23 on board were killed on impact . That same night , a Boeing SB - 29 Superfortress search and rescue plane was sent out to assist in search efforts . It disappeared and was presumed crashed as well . In the aftermath of the crash , an accident investigation board recommended new procedures to scan more frequently for approaching high terrain and to climb to safer altitudes before approaching within 200 miles of a water - land boundary . President Dwight Eisenhower personally went to the Rapid City base and renamed it Ellsworth Air Force Base , to honor the general . Crash site . The remote crash site is one of only two B - 36 crash sites still remaining ( the other is in Alaska ) . Wreckage is strewn across of terrain , and remains today where it landed . The site is located about a 40 - minute hike away from the nearest parking area . A nearby memorial features a propellor from the bomber , and a bronze plaque listing the names of the deceased crewmembers . The location of the crash site is at approximately 48 . 1886 N , - 53 . 6602 W .