A Son's Farewell

Lt. Hank Harding died on March 27, 1961 when his Navy FJ-4 “Fury” crashed into the side of Otay Mountain. Bad weather and confusion at the Brown Field control tower take the blame.

Yesterday Marc Harding — Lt. Harding’s son — visited the wreckage that he only recently found out had been discovered in 1998. Read the whole thing.

From the San Diego Union-Tribune:

Harding knelt beside it, alone, for several minutes. Chunks of the plane were remarkably well preserved with the original paint, still bright, stenciled writing, clearly visible.

Eventually, the group found another large chunk of airplane wing. As they huddled around it, Harding took out of his backpack a small plaque. It had his father’s name and rank, his birthday and date of death.

"To our loving son, brother, husband, father,” it read. “We miss you so much. We will forever love you. We will never forget you."

He held it in place carefully while Dave Schurhammer, who also works with the Macha family on wreck sites, screwed it into place.

Later, after the long hike out, Harding reflected on the day’s events. He had said that placing the plaque did not necessarily close a circle for him, but after coming down from the mountain he said the effort was worth it.

"When my Dad died, he was doing something honorable,” he said. “And I wanted to honor that."

Otay Mountain is about 8 miles southwest of our home.