Paul Erik Perlt
Agency patch
Lieutenant

Paul Erik Perlt

United States Coast Guard — Washington, DC
End of Watch August 24, 1990
Age 27
Tour of Duty 5 yrs
The Vigil Panel 136 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Lieutenant Paul Perlt, Petty Officer Matthew Baker, Lieutenant Duane Stenbak, and Lieutenant Craig Lerner were killed in an airplane accident while conducting a drug surveillance operation in the Caribbean.

The Grumman E2C Hawkeye experienced a wing fire and crashed as the pilot attempted to land at U.S. Naval Air Station, Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico.

Lieutenant Perlt had served with the United States Coast Guard for five years.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife and child.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-FED-B02A7274
Stewardship
Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
Added to badge.nw
August 2, 2026
Last updated
August 2, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

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Tributes

I served 1985 to 1993. You served too, before the badge - different uniform, same idea. You go where you are sent and you do not get to pick the call.
Lieutenant Perlt gave the United States Coast Guard 5 years.
Thank you for your service. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Type Federal Agency
Location Washington, DC
Platform Identity uscg.fed.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch August 24, 1990
Tour of Duty 5 yrs
Age 27
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Military Service

Paul Erik Perlt served in the U.S. Coast Guard (1985–1990) before joining law enforcement.

View full service record on salute.nw →

Lieutenant Paul Erik Perlt is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,759 officers honored here.

In DC, 454 of 1,419 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 32% of this state's fallen. That is 32 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At United States Coast Guard, 20 of 24 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 83.3% of this agency's fallen.

United States Coast Guard
20
of 24 officers
83.3% Accident
DC — Statewide
454
of 1,419 officers
32% Accident
Nationwide
1
of 97,759 officers
0% Accident

National Cause Distribution

How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Paul Erik Perlt's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
1 (0%)
Accident
1 (0%)
Illness
1 (0%)
Cardiac
1 (0%)
Undetermined
1 (0%)
Suicide
1 (0%)

How Paul Erik Perlt Compares

Age at Death
27
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
5
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Paul Erik Perlt is highlighted in Aug.

Jan
820
Feb
730
Mar
748
Apr
708
May
848
Jun
797
Jul
899
Aug
938
Sep
913
Oct
925
Nov
872
Dec
897

Incident Location

Military Service

Paul Erik Perlt served in the U.S. Coast Guard (1985–1990) before joining law enforcement.

Visit Paul Erik Perlt’s page on salute.nw →

His full service record — units, decorations, where he served — is kept on salute.nw.