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Aviation Electronic Technician Second Class Reuben Beumont Harris

An African American teenage boy in a white dress shirt.
  • Unit: Heavy Attack Squadron Four (VAH-4) USS Kitty Hawk
  • Date of Birth: April 12, 1938
  • Date of Death: April 12, 1966
  • Hometown: Columbus, Ohio
  • Place of Death: near Luichow Peninsula, Kuangtung Province, China, East China Sea
  • Award(s): Purple Heart, National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal
  • Cemetery: Court B, Courts of the Missing. Honolulu Memorial, National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaiʻi
Contributed by Dr. Elise Durkee
David H. Ponitz Career Technology Center, Dayton, Ohio
2025/2026

Early Life

Reuben Beaumont Harris was born on April 12, 1936, in Columbus, Ohio. His parents, Andrew and Fanny Harris, both came from Mississippi. In 1940, the family rented a home on 20th Avenue in Columbus, sharing it with neighbors Theola, Lydia, and Alfred Black. Harris grew up alongside his two brothers, Lawrence and Alvin. His father worked at a glass factory as a presser, shaping molten glass into molds, and earned $1,200 a year. His mother kept the home. 

Harris’s twelfth birthday was mentioned in the local newspaper and described him enjoying birthday cake and ice cream sodas with friends and family, including his brother Alvin and friends Robert, Hycell Taylor, and Frank Render III. The article noted that he liked playing games and reading comic books. By 1950, Reuben’s widowed maternal grandmother, Addie Edwards, had moved in with the family. In January 1958, his parents celebrated their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary with a party at their home.

School Years

Harris attended the integrated East High School in Columbus. He actively participated in school life, playing the clarinet in the school band and earning a letter for his musical achievement. He appeared in yearbook photographs with the band and performed as a clarinet player in the school’s production of The Pirates of Penzance.

A newspaper article highlighting Reuben Harris’s twelfth birthday. The Ohio State News, April 22, 1950.
Reuben Harris photographed with his homeroom in the Central High School yearbook, 1953. He is in the fourth row, second from the left. Columbus Metropolitan Library.
Reuben Harris played clarinet with the East High School Orchestra, 1954. He is seated in the middle row of clarinets, last player on the right. Columbus Metropolitan Library.
This photograph of Harris as a young man was posted by his grandson, Zachary, on the Wall of Faces memorial, May 2024.

Homefront

Columbus grew rapidly during Reuben Harris’s childhood and adolescence. The city’s population nearly doubled from 1930 to 1960. Much of that growth was driven by African Americans migrating from the South in search of factory jobs, especially before and during World War II. 

Columbus shared in the broader post-war economic boom. Ohio ranked among the top five states in the nation for industrial production, and federal investment poured into roads and infrastructure. 

However, not everyone benefited equally. Discriminatory lending practices meant that only about 2% of Veterans Administration (VA) home loans went to African American Veterans. Restrictive covenants blocked certain groups from buying homes in particular neighborhoods, further limiting where Black families could live. 

During the Vietnam War, there were several demonstrations and public debates in the Columbus community, including protests at Ohio State University (OSU). In May 1970, OSU was closed for two weeks due to heightened protests advocating for civil rights and opposing the Vietnam War. These clashes came to a head with the National Guard’s attack against students at Kent State.

This photograph shows the intersection of North High and West Lynn streets in Columbus, Ohio, September 28, 1960. Columbus Dispatch Archives, Columbus Metropolitan Library.
A poster encouraging viewers to “Support our Boys in Vietnam,” 1960s. Ohio History Connection.
Anti-Vietnam demonstration in front of the Old Post Office at State and Third Streets. Columbus Dispatch, March 27, 1966. Columbus Metropolitan Library.
Airmen from Lockbourne Air Force Base march in a parade past Vice President Hubert Humphrey in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus Dispatch,  August 21, 1966. Columbus Metropolitan Library.

Military Experience

Harris enlisted in the United States Navy in 1956. According to a post on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, The Wall of Faces, Harris attended Aviation Electronics Technician Airmen (ATAN) school in Memphis in 1956 and 1957. After ATAN school, Harris was stationed at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island in Washington State before being deployed to Vietnam.

In Washington State, he met Annabelle Marion Childs from Vancouver, Canada. They married at Grace Methodist Church in King, Washington, on July 13, 1963. Marriage records indicate he was 25, and his bride was 20. Harris and his wife welcomed a son, Shawn Randale Harris, on September 17, 1965, at the Navy Hospital, Naval Air Station Whidbey Island.

Harris served in Detachment C of the Heavy Attack Squadron, VAH-4. In 1966, he was stationed on USS Kitty Hawk, part of Carrier Task Force (CTF) 77. From 1965 to 1968, the Carrier Task Force was involved in Operation Rolling Thunder. This campaign focused on destroying North Vietnam’s infrastructure, with bombing sorties targeting bridges, railways, and supply depots. 

On April 12, 1966, a Navy KA-3B Skywarrior (tail number 142653, call sign “Holly Green 03”) took off from Cubi Point in the Philippines with four crew members aboard: pilot Lieutenant Commander William A. Glasson, Lieutenant Junior Grade Larry M. Jordan, Aircrew Survival Equipmentman Senior Chief Petty Officer Kenneth W. Pugh, and Aviation Radio Technician Second Class Reuben B. Harris. The recently repaired plane was en route to USS Kitty Hawk in the South China Sea during the Vietnam War. When it failed to arrive on schedule, the Navy launched search-and-rescue operations with help from USS Enterprise and units from the 3rd Air Rescue and Recovery Group of the 13th Air Force.

Shortly after the plane went missing, the People’s Republic of China announced that it had shot down a U.S. aircraft that had entered Chinese airspace. Investigators later determined the plane had been shot down near Hainan Island, in southern China.

Reuben Harris and Annabele Marion Childs married on July 13, 1963, in Seattle. State of Washington.
Harris is photographed with other members of Heavy Attack Squadron Four (VAH-4), aboard USS Kitty Hawk. He is seated in the first row, third from the left, 1965.
Part one of a detailed report of the loss of Harris’s plane, published in The New York Times on April 13, 1966.
Part two of a detailed report of the loss of Harris’s plane, published in The New York Times on April 13, 1966.
A syndicated newspaper report was published after Harris’s plane was shot down over China. The Florida Times-Union, April 14, 1966.

Commemoration

In 1975, Chinese officials returned the cremated remains of one crew member. On January 6, 1976, the Central Identification Laboratory in Hawai’i, now known as the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA), identified those remains as belonging to Senior Chief Kenneth Ward Pugh. No information was provided about the other three crew members.

Harris’s death was officially declared in 1977, more than a decade after he was lost. Even so, his case has not been forgotten. The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency considers it in “Active Pursuit,” meaning there is enough information to keep searching for answers. His case is a priority, and resources are still being devoted to finding out what happened to him.

Reuben Beaumont Harris is remembered and honored in many ways. In 1985, the city of Columbus held a ceremony in his honor. His name is inscribed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., on panel 6E, line 106 — a wall that bears the names of over 58,000 Americans who gave their lives during the Vietnam War. He is also memorialized on the Honolulu Memorial at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Harris left behind a lasting legacy.  Dozens of people who knew him or have since learned his story have reached out to his family, asking to share their memories and pay their respects. Within his own family,  at least two grandsons have followed in his footsteps by serving in the United States Navy.

The Franklinton Area Commission in the City of Columbus passed a resolution recognizing Missing in Action servicemembers in May 1985. Franklinton Area Commission.
Reuben B. Harris’s name is inscribed on the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial in Washington, D.C., December 8, 2025. Courtesy of Elise Durkee.
Harris's name engraved on the Honolulu Memorial.
Reuben B. Harris’s name is engraved on the Honolulu Memorial at National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, 2026. Courtesy of the American Battle Monuments Commission.
Zachary Harris, Reuben Harris’s grandson, posted this picture and remembrance on The Wall of Faces virtual memorial, May 26, 2024.

Bibliography

Primary Sources

Anti-Vietnam War Protest Demonstrators. Columbus Dispatch [Columbus, Ohio], March 27, 1966. Columbus Metropolitan Library (PS_B58_F13_04). https://digital-collections.columbuslibrary.org/ 

Columbus Dispatch Archives. Columbus Metropolitan Library. 

Daniels, Dick. “Landing on Aircraft.” The Lemoore Advance [Lemoore, California], March 16, 1967. Newspapers.com (188557310). 

Homeowners Loan Corporation. Columbus, Ohio Map, 1936. Map. 1936. Columbus Metropolitan Library. https://columbuslibrary.omeka.net/exhibits/show/transportation-in-columbus/item/135.

Kitty Hawk (CVA-63) – April 1966. Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships and Stations. National Archives and Records Administration (NAID: 40450548). https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40450548.

“Kitty Hawk Members Launching Airstrikes.” The Daily Herald [Everett, Washington], May 3, 1967. Newspapers.com (188560713). 

“More Babies” Whidbey News-Times [Oak Harbor, Washington], October 14, 1965. Newspapers.com (1157488414).

Ohio. Franklin County. 1930 U.S. Federal Census. Digital Images. https://ancestry.com. 

Ohio. Franklin County. 1940 U.S. Federal Census. Digital Images. https://ancestry.com. 

Ohio. Franklin County. 1950 U.S. Federal Census. Digital Images. https://ancestry.com. 

“Red China Gloats Over Lost Plane.” The Florida Times-Union [Jacksonville, Florida], April 14, 1966. Newspapers.com (193215509).

Reuben B. Harris. Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854-2013. Digital Images. https://ancestry.com. 

Reuben Beaumont Harris. U.S., Vietnam War Military Casualties, 1956–1998. https://ancestry.com. 

“Reuben Harris, 12, Celebrates Birthday.” The Ohio State News [Columbus, Ohio], April 22, 1950. Ohio History Connection [sn84024236]. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p16007coll52/id/8420/rec/275. 

Reuben Harris. U.S., School Yearbooks, 1900–2016. Digital Images. https://ancestry.com. 

Reuben Harris. U.S. Vietnam War Military Casualties, 1956-1998. Digital Images. https://ancestry.com. 

Support Our Boys in Vietnam. Poster. 1960s. Ohio History Connection (OVS4264). https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p267401coll32/id/15956/rec/34. 

USS Kitty Hawk (CVA 63) WestPac Cruise Book 1965–66. Cruise Book. 1965–1966. https://www.navysite.de/cruisebooks/cv63-66/.

USS Kitty Hawk OPS. Moving images. May 1966. National Archives and Records Administration (NAID: 85180). https://catalog.archives.gov/id/85180. 

Welles, Benjamin. “Fighter Downed U.S. Attack Plane.” The New York Times [New York, New York], April 13, 1966. 

Secondary Sources

“ATCS Reuben Beaumont Harris.” Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency. Accessed March 8, 2026. https://dpaa-mil.sites.crmforce.mil/dpaaProfile?id=a0Jt0000000KZSyEAO.

“ATCS Reuben Beaumont Harris.” Find a Grave. Updated October 25, 2010. Accessed January 9, 2026. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/60612173/reuben-beaumont-harris.

“Harris, Reuben Beaumont.” My Fallen Soldiers. Accessed March 8, 2026. https://myfallensoldiers.com/1966/04/12/harris-reuben-beaumontnavy-aviation-electronic-technician-2nd-class/.

“Highways.” Columbus Metropolitan Library. Accessed March 8, 2026. https://columbuslibrary.omeka.net/exhibits/show/transportation-in-columbus/highways.

Murphey, Michael. “MIA families often the last to know what happened.” The Spokesman-Review [Spokane, Washington], December 30, 1984. Newspapers.com (572637033). 

“Reuben B. Harris.” Wall of Faces, Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. Accessed March 8, 2026. https://www.vvmf.org/Wall-of-Faces/21623/REUBEN-B-HARRIS/.

“Reuben Beaumont Harris.” American Battle Monuments Commission. Accessed March 8, 2026. https://weremember.abmc.gov/print/certificate/298768.

“Reuben Beaumont Harris” Honor States. Accessed March 8, 2026. https://www.honorstates.org/index.php?id=276906.

“Reuben Beaumont Harris.” POW Network. Accessed March 8, 2026. https://www.pownetwork.org/bios/h/h023.htm.

“Reuben Beaumont Harris.” The Wall USA. Accessed March 8, 2026. https://thewall-usa.com/guest.asp?recid=21638.

“Reuben Beaumont Harris.” Veterans Legacy Memorial, National Cemetery Administration. Accessed March 16, 2026. https://www.vlm.cem.va.gov/ReubenBeaumontHarris/49219. 

Robertson, Kyle. “Columbus in the 1960s: Take a Nostalgic Look Back with These Photos.” The Columbus Dispatch [Columbus, OH], August 15, 2025. https://www.dispatch.com/picture-gallery/news/2025/08/15/travel-back-in-time-to-experience-columbus-in-the-60s-with-these-photos/85641674007/. 

“USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63).” Hull Number. Accessed March 8, 2026. https://www.hullnumber.com/CV-63.

This profile was researched and created through the Researching Silent Heroes program, sponsored by the American Battle Monuments Commission.