Obituary of darrell c. "Smoke" bennett

On December 12, 2020, our beloved Darrell C. “Smoke” Bennett passed quietly in Gulf Breeze, FL. He was born in Hamburg, Iowa in 1924. He had been a retired resident in Gulf Breeze for 25 years. He was preceded in death by his wife of 74 beautiful years. They married when he had to return home on survivors leave during WWII, 1944. He is survived by his two sons; seven grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren; also surviving one brother and many, many nieces and nephews. Darrell served for 25 years as a Naval Fighter Pilot, instructor and advanced up to Squadron Commander during his military service, and retired in 1965. After retiring from the Navy, he continued his love for flying with many years as a Corporate Pilot for Xerox Corporation and also as a personal pilot for many Hollywood stars in need of flight service. He was rewarded for his Naval Service and received the Naval Presidential Citation. During his retirement in Gulf Breeze, he also volunteered at the Pensacola National Naval Aviation Museum, which has a plane on exhibit that Darrell actually piloted for 24 hours. He also has an Honor on the wall at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC. A Committal Service will be held on Tuesday, March 30, 2021 at 2:30pm at Barrancas National Cemetery. The procession will meet at 2:00pm at Olive Baptist Church-Warrington Campus, 103 W. Winthrop Avenue, Pensacola, Florida 32507. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in “Smoke’s” memory to the Pensacola National Naval Aviation Museum (www.navalaviationmuseum.org) or to the USS Gambier Bay Association (www.ussgambierbay.org).