Artifacts belonging to Lieutenant Barry Troy returning to Canada

News Article / February 21, 2018

Click on the photo under “Image Gallery” to see more photos.

RCAF Public Affairs

On September 22, 2017, following hurricanes in the Jacksonville, Florida, area, a parachute and accompanying items were retrieved from a beach near Naval Station Mayport, which is located near Jacksonville.

These items were identified as belonging to Lieutenant William Thomas Barry Troy, a pilot with the Royal Canadian Navy who lost his life on February 25, 1958, when his McDonnell F2H-3 Banshee fighter jet vanished in dense fog following takeoff from Mayport. Lieutenant Troy and the pilots of three other Canadian Banshees had been participating in joint exercises with the United States Navy at Mayport and were returning to Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship Bonaventure. Lieutenant Troy’s remains were never found.

On Monday, February 26, 2018, the artifacts will be formally transferred to the care of the Royal Canadian Air Force at a brief ceremony at Naval Station Mayport. The event will also be an opportunity to thank the Jacksonville park ranger, Mr. Zachary Johnson, who retrieved the items from the beach, and the Jacksonville police officer, Officer Nolan Kea, who has been safeguarding them. Lieutenant Troy’s brother, Dick Troy and his wife, Pauline Troy, along with senior military personnel from the United States and Canada, are also scheduled to participate.

Following an event in Ottawa at a date yet to be announced, most of the artifacts will, in time, be displayed at the Aviation Museum at 12 Wing Shearwater, Nova Scotia. At the time of Lieutenant Troy’s death, 12 Wing was a Royal Canadian Navy establishment and Lieutenant Troy’s home base. All military aviation assets, missions, and organizations, including 12 Wing Shearwater, are now the responsibility of the Royal Canadian Air Force.