Pfc. Kirkpatrick was among over 2,000 U.S. servicemen aboard the British troop ship HMT Rohna traveling through the Mediterranean Sea on their way to the China, Burma, India Theater of War. Traveling in a convoy, Rohna was attacked by German bombers which launched rocket powered, remote controlled glide bombs. One rocket hit the ship at the waterline sinking the ship with a loss of 1,015 American lives, making it the largest loss of U.S. troops at sea in a single incident. Pfc. Kirkpatrick is listed on the Tablets of the Missing at the North Africa American Cemetery in Tunis, Tunisia. Narrative researched and written by Hall of Honor Staff.