Richard Halsey Best Lieutenant Commander Richard Halsey " Dick " Best , USN , ( March 24 , 1910 – October 28 , 2001 ) was a dive - bomber pilot in the United States Navy , during World War II . Early career ( 1928 - 1941 ) . Richard H . Best was appointed to the United States Naval Academy in 1928 , and he graduated with honors in 1932 . Following his graduation he served for two years aboard the light cruiser . In 1934 he was transferred to the Naval Air Station Pensacola , Florida , as a naval aviation student . He completed his flight training in December 1935 and was assigned to Fighting Squadron Two ( VF - 2B ) aboard the aircraft carrier , flying the Grumman F2F . In June 1938 , he was given the choice to either join a patrol squadron at Panama or Hawaii , or become a flight instructor at Pensacola . Best chose to go to Pensacola and was assigned to Training Squadron Five , which trained carrier aviation , aerobatics , aerial combat and gunnery , dive bombing , torpedo dropping , formation flying , and instrument flying . As instrument flying became a mandatory requirement , Best also trained the flight instructors . On May 31 , 1940 , Best received orders to join Bombing Squadron Six ( VB - 6 ) aboard the aircraft carrier . Upon arrival at Naval Air Station North Island , California , on June 10 , Best became Flight Officer ( operations officer ) of VB - 6 . Up to early 1942 Best advanced to Executive Officer and finally Commander of VB - 6 . In 1940 VB - 6 was equipped with the Northrop BT - 1 dive bomber , and converted in late 1941 to the Douglas SBD - 2 Dauntless . In the spring of 1942 the SBD - 3 replaced the SBD - 2 , being equipped with an uprated engine , armour , self - sealing fuel tanks and a better armament . World War II ( 1941 - 1944 ) . On December 7 , 1941 , the " Enterprise " was operating 330 km ( 150 mi ) south of Pearl Harbor . At about 06 : 15 the carrier launched 18 SBDs to search ahead of the carrier , the Commander of the Enterprise Air Group , LtCdr . Howard L . Young , 12 planes of Scouting Squadron Six ( VS - 6 ) and five from VB - 6 , Best not being among them . Of VB - 6 , the crew of plane " 6 - B - 3 " was lost over Pearl Harbor . On December 10 two pilots of VB - 6 would sink the Japanese submarine at . Best himself saw his first action on February 1 , 1942 . At dusk VB - 6 attacked Japanese shipping off Kwajalein under his command ; before noon he led eight SBDs from VB - 6 and one from VS - 6 to attack Taroa Island , Maloelap Atoll . On February 24 , 1942 Best took part in the attack of Wake Island by the Enterprise Air Group , and on March 4 Marcus Island was attacked . After these raids " Enterprise " returned to Pearl Harbor and accompanied the during the " Doolittle Raid " in mid - April . Both carriers then sped to the south , but were too late to take part in the Battle of the Coral Sea . Both carriers and their sister ship were then recalled to counter a new Japanese threat at Midway Islands . " Enterprise " and " Hornet " left Pearl Harbor on May 28 , the hastily repaired " Yorktown " two days later to take part in what became known as Battle of Midway , from 4 to June 6 , 1942 . After contact reports of Midway - based PBY Catalina patrol aircraft on the morning of June 4 , 1942 , " Enterprise " started to launch her air group starting on 07 : 06h . Under the overall command of the air group commander ( CEAG ) Lt . Cdr . Wade McClusky were 14 TBD - 1 Devastator torpedo bombers of Torpedo Squadron 6 ( VT - 6 ) , 34 SBDs of VB - 6 , the CEAG section , and VS - 6 , and ten F4F - 4 Wildcat fighters of Fighting Squadron 6 ( VF - 6 ) . However , the squadrons became separated and reached the Japanese independently . Only the dive bombers stayed together and reached the enemy by 09 : 55h . At about 10 : 22h the " Enterprise " dive bombers started to attack two Japanese carriers , which proved to be the " Kaga " , and the " Akagi " . At this point , the attack became confused , as all 34 Dauntlesses started to attack " Kaga " , and none the " Akagi " . Obviously , Best expected to attack according to the U . S . dive bomber doctrine . This was that VB - 6 would attack the nearer carrier ( in that case " Kaga " ) and VS - 6 the one further away ( here " Akagi " ) . The three - plane CEAG section was expected to attack last , as their planes were equipped with cameras to assess the damage later . However , evidently McClusky was not aware of this , having been a fighter pilot until becoming CEAG . Therefore McClusky began his dive on " Kaga " , being followed by VS - 6 , and Best ' s VB - 6 was also attacking " Kaga " according to doctrine . Lieutenant Best noticed the error and broke off with his two wingmen to attack the " Akagi " . At 10 : 26h Best ' s three SBDs attacked the " Akagi " . The first bomb , dropped by Lt . ( jg ) Edwin John Kroeger , missed . The second bomb , aimed by Ens . Frederick Thomas Weber , landed in the water , near the stern . The force wave of that hit jammed the " Akagi " ' s rudder . The last bomb , dropped by Best , punched though the flight deck and exploded in the upper hangar , in the middle of 18 Nakajima B5N2 planes , parked there . That hit doomed the " Akagi " . Later that day , Lieutenant Best participated in the attack on the last remaining Japanese carrier - the " Hiryu " , possibly scoring one of the four hits . After the battle , Best was awarded the Navy Cross and the Distinguished Flying Cross . However , on the morning flight Best had tested an oxygen bottle to be sure that it was not leaking caustic soda . Best ' s first inhalation was then filled with gas fumes . He snorted the gas fumes out , not thinking about it anymore . The next day Best began to cough up blood repeatedly . The flight surgeon found out that the gas fumes had activated latent tuberculosis . He entered the hospital at Pearl Harbor on June 24 , 1942 . After undergoing 32 months of treatment , Richard Best retired from the US Navy in 1944 . Civil life ( 1944 - 2001 ) . After his retirement from the Navy Best moved to Santa Monica , California , where he lived for the rest of his life . After discharge from the hospital , Best worked in a small research division of the Douglas Aircraft Corporation . This division became part of the Rand Corporation in December 1948 , where Best headed the security department until his retirement in March 1975 . He died in October 2001 and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery . Best was married and had a daughter - Barbara Ann Llewellyn and a son - Richard Halsey Best II .