Richard Halsey Best

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Richard H. Best was appointed to the United States Naval Academy (USNA) in 1928. Having graduated with honors in 1932, he served for two years aboard the light cruiser USS Richmond. In 1934 he was transferred to the Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, as a naval aviation student. He completed his flight training in December 1935. His first assignment was Fighting Squadron Two (VF-2B) aboard the aircraft carrier USS Lexington, flying the Grumman F2F.

In June 1938, Best was given the choice to either join a patrol squadron at Panama or Hawaii, or become a flight instructor at Pensacola: he chose Pensacola, and was assigned to instruct Training Squadron Five. Anticipating what was probably coming, after a year and some months of instructing, Best decided that he could be of most use as a dive bomber pilot. He put in a request for a transfer to the Pacific Fleet in that capacity.

On May 31, 1940, Best received orders to join Bombing Squadron Six (VB-6), which was assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise. Upon arrival at the squadron's base on land, Naval Air Station North Island, California, on June 10, Best was made flight officer (operations officer) of the squadron, who was third-in-command. By early 1942, after the war in the Pacific had begun, he had advanced to executive officer (XO), a standard navy term for second-in-command, under his close friend and USNA classmate, William Hollingsworth, known as "Holly," as commander. Best subsequently became squadron commander in time for the Battle of Midway.

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