Richard Halsey “Dick” Best flew his last combat missions at the Battle of Midway on June 4, 1942, and never flew again. Within days he was coughing blood. Sources attribute the lung damage to caustic soda from a faulty oxygen system, which they say activated latent tuberculosis. He spent roughly two years in hospital, was medically retired from the Navy in March 1944, and then built a civilian career in aerospace and defense work in the Los Angeles area until his death in October 2001, at age 91.
The Midway missions that were his last flights
Best commanded Bombing Squadron Six (VB-6) from the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise. On June 4, 1942, his squadron joined the dive-bomber attacks on the Japanese carriers. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs says Best and two wingmen separated from the main attack on the carrier Kaga and dropped three bombs on Akagi, with Best’s the third hit. The Arlington National Cemetery historian also credits him with hitting Akagi and Hiryu that day. Those are the attacks that made him one of the most cited dive-bomber pilots of the battle, and they are the last combat flying he did.
The VA account is a 2021 “Veteran of the Day” profile, and the Arlington account is a 2019 blog post, so both rely on secondary accounts of the battle rather than on contemporary mission reports reproduced in full. Neither source is a detailed reconstruction of individual bomb hits, so treat the specific claim about Akagi as the sources’ own attribution.
The illness that ended his flying
After returning from the missions, Best began coughing blood. The sources agree on the sequence but not on every detail of the medical explanation. Tillman’s 2002 article in Naval History Magazine and the 2001 Los Angeles Times obituary both attribute the injury to caustic soda from a defective or faulty oxygen system. The exposure, in the sources’ account, activated latent tuberculosis that Best already carried. The VA profile gives the same basic chain.
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That explanation comes from the Navy and press accounts of the period and from Best’s own recollections, not from a published medical record that a reader can check. What is well documented is the outcome. Best told the Los Angeles Times, “I knew my career was dead,” and added, “I never flew again.”
Hospital treatment and medical retirement
The sources differ on how long his recovery lasted. The phrase “about two years” and the figure “32 months” both appear, and they are not described the same way. The table below lists each source and what it says.
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| Source (date) | Recovery period as stated | Exit from the Navy as stated |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (November 6, 2021) | 32 months of hospital treatment | Not stated in this profile’s exit detail |
| Los Angeles Times obituary (November 3, 2001) | 32 months of treatment | Not stated as a retirement date |
| Captain James A. Noone, U.S. Naval Institute (February 2000) | Two years in naval hospitals | Not stated |
| Barrett Tillman, U.S. Naval Institute (February 2002) | About two years of hospital recovery | Medically retired as a lieutenant commander in March 1944 |
| Other accounts (undated in the source set) | Not stated | Left the Navy in 1944 |
The reasonable reading is that Best was hospitalized for roughly two years, a span of about 32 months, and was retired in March 1944. The difference between “about two years” and “32 months” is a difference in how the sources round, not a conflict about the outcome. The sources do not give a single documented date for the start or end of hospital care, so readers should not treat either figure as an exact clinical timeline.
Civilian career after the Navy
The Los Angeles Times obituary says Best went to work at Douglas Aircraft after leaving the Navy and then joined the RAND Corporation in 1947. Tillman’s article in Naval History Magazine dates his acceptance of a RAND position to 1948. The two accounts agree on the rest of the career: Best retired from RAND as its security manager in 1975.
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The one-year gap is unresolved in the available sources. If you need a single date for a citation, use the source you are citing and name it, rather than presenting either year as settled fact.
Later years, public remarks, and death
Best stayed in the Los Angeles area after leaving RAND and remained active in Navy-related organizations. He took part in Midway commemorations and spoke about the battle in public. At a 1999 Battle of Midway symposium, he joked about his recovery: “And here I am today. So much for Navy medicine.” Captain James A. Noone recorded the remark in his account for Naval History Magazine, published in February 2000, which includes a sidebar by Vice Admiral William D. Houser.
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Best also described his last flying day to Barrett Tillman in terms that have been repeated since: “The last day I touched a stick I sank two carriers.” Tillman’s 2002 article reports that statement. It is a personal recollection, and the carrier-sinking claim reflects the sources’ attributions rather than a separate battle-damage assessment.
He died in October 2001 at age 91. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery, which records his interment in a 2019 account of Midway veterans resting there.
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Awards and the Medal of Honor effort
Best received the Navy Cross for the Midway attacks. The Arlington National Cemetery account reproduces the citation, which reads: “Defying extreme danger from concentrated anti-aircraft barrage and powerful fighter opposition, Lieutenant Commander Best, with bold determination and courageous zeal, led his squadron in dive-bombing assaults against Japanese naval units. Flying at a distance from his own forces which rendered return unlikely because of probable fuel exhaustion, he pressed home his attacks with extreme disregard for his own personal safety.” The cemetery identifies the text as the award citation and does not name an individual author.
The VA profile lists a second decoration, the Distinguished Flying Cross. The Los Angeles Times obituary also says Distinguished Flying Cross. The Arlington account calls the second award the Distinguished Service Cross. Because the VA and the obituary agree, the Distinguished Flying Cross is the better-supported wording, but the discrepancy is not resolved in the sources.
Later advocacy sought to upgrade the Navy Cross to the Medal of Honor. According to the Arlington account, Admiral Thomas Moorer and Vice Admiral William Houser led an effort to obtain the Medal of Honor for Best, and that effort was unsuccessful before his death. A Senate tribute entered into the Congressional Record of March 23, 2000 supports an upgrade. The record shows advocacy, not an award decision, so it should not be read as a grant of the Medal of Honor.
Dick Best in the 2019 film
Best appears as a character in the 2019 feature film Midway, and Arlington National Cemetery confirms that the film portrays him and his Midway missions. A dramatized film is not a historical record. Use the sources above, not the film, for dates, medical history, and awards.
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For the detailed primary-source record of his later years, the most useful starting points are the VA profile and the Arlington National Cemetery account.
Quick Recap
Sources used
- Barrett Tillman, “Farewell to Midway’s Best,” Naval History Magazine, February 2002: https://www.usni.org/magazines/naval-history-magazine/2002/february/farewell-midways-best
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, “#VeteranOfTheDay Navy Veteran Richard ‘Dick’ Best,” November 6, 2021: https://news.va.gov/96603/veteranoftheday-navy-veteran-richard-dick-best/
- Los Angeles Times, “Richard Best, 91; Pilot Helped to Sink 2 Japanese Carriers in Battle of Midway,” November 3, 2001: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-nov-03-me-65245-story.html
- Kevin M. Hymel, “Battle of Midway Hero Rests at ANC,” Arlington National Cemetery, December 20, 2019: https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/Blog/Post/10258/Battle-of-Midway-Hero-Rests-at-ANC
- Captain James A. Noone, “Warriors to Return to Midway,” Naval History Magazine, February 2000: https://www.usni.org/magazines/naval-history-magazine/2000/february/warriors-return-midway
- U.S. Congress, Congressional Record, March 23, 2000, Senate tribute to Richard Best: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CREC-2000-03-23/pdf/CREC-2000-03-23.pdf
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