WALNUT RIDGE, Ark. – The remains of US Navy Seaman First Class Glenn Tipton, who was killed in the attack on Pearl Harbor, will be returned to his native northeast Arkansas Wednesday evening courtesy of the Arkansas Air National Guard. The remains will arrive on a C-130 aircraft at Walnut Ridge Regional Airport at approximately 7:00 p.m.
The Navy is escorting Tipton’s coffin to Memphis International Airport this evening, and plans had originally called for the body to be brought by hearse back to the area. Instead, the 189th Airlift Wing of the Air National Guard offered its services to deliver Tipton back home.
Major Austin Schlech with the 189th notes that all times are tentative, subject to arrival time and the time required to transfer the sailor’s remains at Memphis. Current plans call for the airplane bearing Tipton’s body to arrive in Memphis around 6:30 this evening, and for the C-130 to arrive in Walnut Ridge at approximately 7:00 p.m.
Tipton was a Randolph County native who was killed when his ship, the USS Oklahoma, capsized during the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941. His remains and those of many others lost on the ship were anonymous until recently, when some, including Tipton’s, were identified through the use of DNA technology.
Visitation for Tipton will be Thursday from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Wings of Honor WWII Museum, located at 70 Beacon Road in Walnut Ridge. His remains will lay in repose, and family members will be on hand to greet visitors.
A memorial service will be held Friday at 10:00 a.m. in the museum, and Tipton will be laid to rest at the Opposition Cemetery near Ravenden.
Press release – Brett Cooper
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