David Gissell served in the U.S. Navy as a Lieutenant (Junior Grade) with the Attack Squadron 146 aboard the USS Constellation, U.S. 7th Fleet during the Vietnam War. A Naval Aviator, he was piloting an A-4 Skyhawk that crashed into the ocean on July 8, 1963, approximately 50 nautical miles East of Miyagi Island, Okinawa. His body was recovered by helicopter and he was returned to the USS Constellation, where he was pronounced dead.