Klaus
Yrurgen Bingham, Staff Sergeant,
reconnaissance team member, Task Force I Advisory Element. Born 14 December 1943
in Metz, France. Entered service on 17 June 1965 at New Orleans, Louisiana.
Missing in action since 10
May 1971, after his long-range reconnaissance team 'Asp" was inserted into
western Quang Nam Province 12 miles from Laos on 3 May; past initial radio
contact, no further contact was ever made.
John
Arthur Boronski, Staff Sergeant,
reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control Central, MACV-SOG. Born 24
July 1944 in Northampton, Massachusetts. Entered service on 22 June 1964 at
Springfield, Massachusetts.
Missing in action since 24 March 1970, when UH- I H
helicopter lifted him and other team members from landing zone in the tri-border
area 14 miles inside Cambodia; aircraft racked by explosions during ascent,
continued forward aflame for 200 yards, and disappeared into the jungle, where
it crashed.
Alan
Lee Boyer,
Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control, MACV-SOG. Born 8
March 1946 in Chicago, Illinois. Entered service on I I January 1966 at Butte,
Montana.
Missing in action since 28
March 1968, when last seen 15 miles inside Laos northeast of Tchepone during
extraction, having started to climb a rope ladder that broke as the Vietnamese
H-34 helicopter moved away because of hostile weapons fire.
George
R. Brown,
Sergeant First Class, reconnaissance patrol leader, Command and Control,
MACV-SOG. Born 19 September 1935 in Daytona Beach, Florida. Entered service on
22 October 1952.
Missing in action since 28
March 1968, when last seen alive and unwounded with two other Special Forces
sergeants and one Vietnamese sergeant awaiting extraction from an area 15 miles
inside Laos northeast of Tchepone by helicopter, which was driven off by ground
fire; later search of area failed to reveal any trace of the team.
William
Theodore Brown,
Staff Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control North,
MACV-SOG. Born 20 February 1945 in Chicago, Illinois. Entered service at La
Habra, California. Date of entry not available.
Missing in action since 3
November 1969, when his reconnaissance patrol was attacked by a numerically
superior force 30 miles inside Laos near Ban Chakevy Tai; he was shot through
the body just below the rib cage in the initial burst of automatic weapons fire
and was last seen lying wounded on the ground as their position was about to be
overrun, as related by an indigenous team member who evaded capture.
Michael
Paul Burns, Specialist
Fourth Class, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control North, MACV-SOG.
Born 25 April 1947 in Oconto Falls, Wisconsin. Entered service on 14 February
1968 at El Paso, Texas.
Missing in action since 31
July 1969, when his reconnaissance patrol was attacked 1.5 miles inside Laos
west of Hue just prior to extraction; last seen by Pan and Comen, the surviving
commandos, lying on his back with severe head wounds, possibly dead, after
incurring blast of a B-40 rocket.
Johnny
C. Calhoun, Staff
Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol leader, Command and Control, MACV-SOG. Born 14
July 1945 in Roanoke, Alabama. Entered service on 18 January 1963 at Atlanta,
Georgia.
Missing in action since 27
March 1968, when his team was attacked 1.5 miles south of Ta Bat in the A Shau
Valley and he provided covering fire for rest of patrol while ordering the other
five members to withdraw; hit several times in the chest and stomach and last
seen by interpreter Ho-Thong as he slumped to the ground, pulled the pin from a
grenade, and clutched it to explode among advancing enemy, but his ultimate fate
was unknown because of the rapid retreat of the survivors.
Donald
Gene "Butch" Carr,
Captain, assistant launch officer, Mobile Launch Team 3, Task Force I Advisory
Element. Born 10 December 1938 in East Chicago, Indiana. Entered service on 12
October 1961 at East Chicago, Indiana.
Missing in action since 6
July 1971, while flying a visual reconnaissance mission in an Air Force OV-10
aircraft from the 23d Tactical Aerial Surveillance Squadron (tail number 634)
piloted by Lt. Daniel Thomas, which disappeared 15 miles inside Laos west of Ben
Het.
James
Derwin Cohron, Staff
Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control North, MACV-SOG.
Born 11 November 1938 in Leon, Iowa. Entered service on 9 January 1968, in
Centerville, Iowa.
Missing in action since 12
January 1968, while a member of Spike Team "Indiana," as the second
man from the rear of the team formation, when ambushed 1 mile inside Laos south
of Khe Sanh; team broke contact by evading through a gully and set up defensive
position on a small hill where called for helicopter extraction while waiting in
vain for Cohron and two indigenous soldiers; tall elephant grass obstructed
their vision, and efforts to reach him via squad radio failed.
William
Michael Copley, Specialist
Fourth Class, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control North, MACV-SOG.
Born
22 May 1949 in
Columbus, Ohio. Entered service on 31 July 1967 at Los Angeles, California.
Missing in action since 16
November 1968, when patrol was ambushed 16 miles inside Laos west of Ben Het
prior to establishing overnight positions; he was seriously wounded by automatic
weapons fire and cried out to SSgt. Roger T. Loe, "Help me, I'm
hit!"; Loe carried him on his back until he tripped after traveling a short
distance, tried to administer first aid until Copley's face showed signs of
death, and was forced to leave because of pursuit by hostile forces.
David
Arthur Davidson, Staff Sergeant, reconnaissance
patrol member, Command and Control North, MACV-SOG. Born 8 March 1947 in
Washington, D.C. Entered service at East Riverdale, Maryland. Date of entry not
available. Reenlisted on 18 May 1968 in the Republic of Vietnam.
Missing in action since 5 October
1970, after his patrol had established its overnight position 12 miles inside
Laos west of Ta Bat and was attacked by a hostile force; according to the two
surviving indigenous patrol members, Davidson was hit once in the head and fell
down a ridge, after which he lay motionless with a probable fatal head wound.
Ricardo
Gonzalez Davis, Sergeant First Class, reconnaissance
patrol leader, Command and Control North, MACV-SOG. Born 17 March 1941 in Fort
Stockton, Texas. Entered service at Carlsbad, New Mexico. Date of entry not
available. Reenlisted on 30 May 1967 at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.
Missing in action since 20 March
1969, when his six-man patrol was attacked 11 miles inside Laos west of
Kham Duc; Sgt. James C. La Motte was two feet away when Davis was hit by rifle
fire in upper chest and face and said, 'Jim, Jim!' and fell; the assistant
patrol leader advanced to Davis's position seven minutes later but detected no
signs of life, whereupon the patrol was forced to evacuate the area because of
advancing hostile soldiers.
Ronald
James Dexter, Master Sergeant,
reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control, MACV-SOG.
Born
Born 23 July 1933 in Chicago,
Illinois. Entered service on 2 September 1951 at Chicago, Illinois.
Missing
in action since 3 June 1967, when last seen exiting a downed CH-46 helicopter as
it was being grenaded by approaching hostile forces 15 miles inside Laos west of
the A Shau Valley; the Nung commander, Mr. Ky, saw several men in a large bomb
crater firing red star clusters from a flare gun as Ky was lifted out on the
last helicopter.
Raymond
Louis Echevarria,
Master Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol leader, Command and Control, MACV-SOG.
Born 16 September 1933 in Brooklyn, New York. Entered service on 3 December 1950
in New York City.
Missing in action since 3
October 1966, when patrol was inserted 1 mile inside Laos west of the DMZ and
immediately engaged in firefight under adverse circumstances; sole survivor,
interpreter Bui Kim Tien, last heard of him when SFC. Eddie L. Williams had told
Tien, "Jones is dying and Ray (Echevarria) is the same way."
Danny
Day Entrican, First Lieutenant, reconnaissance patrol leader,
Task Force I Advisory Element. Born 12 August 1946 Brookhaven,
Mississippi. Entered service on I October 1969 at Fort Devens, Massachusetts.
Missing in action since 18
May 1971, after his reconnaissance team "Alaska" was inserted into the
Da Krong Valley in Vietnam on 15 May and overwhelmed in a firefight three days
later 1 mile from the Laotian border; surviving commando Truong Minh Long and
interpreter Truong To Ha stated that they rolled downhill after hostile search
party detected them hiding in bush, at which point Entrican was apparently
wounded and yelled at them to move out.
John
Theodore Gallagher,
Staff Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control North,
MACV-SOG. Born 17 June 1943 in Summit, New Jersey. Entered service on 25
December 1962 at New Haven, Connecticut.
Missing in action since 5
January 1968, when aboard the second helicopter transporting patrol 20 miles
inside Laos south of Lao Bao, which was struck by 37-mm antiaircraft fire at an
altitude of 2,000 feet; it went into an uncontrollable spin and exploded in
flames upon impact with ground; heavy ground fire prevented search attempts.
Fred
Allen Gassman,
Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control North, MACV-SOG.
Born 5 September 1947 at Eglin Field, Florida. Entered service at Fort Walton
Beach, Florida. Date of entry not available. Reenlisted on 10 February 1969.
Missing in action since 5 October 1970, after his
patrol had established its overnight position 12 miles inside Laos west of Ta
Bat and was attacked by a hostile force; Gassman radioed the overhead aircraft
for emergency extraction and, as he attempted to retrieve the homing device,
stated on the radio, 'I've been hit, and in the worst way," followed by
several groans before the radio went dead. According to the two surviving
indigenous patrol members, Gassman was last seen lying motionless
with a large hole in his back.
Douglas
J. Glover,
Staff Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control, MACV-SOG.
Born 2 May 1943 in Cortland, New York. Entered service at Cortland, New York.
Date of entry not available. Reenlisted on 17 October 1965 at Fort Myer,
Virginia.
Missing in action since 19
February 1968, when reconnaissance team was being extracted 4 miles inside Laos
west of Dak Sut; as the helicopter ascended from the landing zone, it nosed over
and crashed, bursting into flames; the pilot, co-pilot, and one team member
survived but left six persons missing because of hostile fire; later recovery
efforts detected only five badly burned unknown remains.
Gary
Alan Harned,
Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control Central, MACV-SOG.
Born 7 July 1950 in Meadville, Pennsylvania. Entered service on 10 September
1968 at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Missing in action since 24
March 1970, when UH-1H helicopter lifted him and other team members from landing
zone in the tri-border area 14 miles inside Cambodia; aircraft racked by
explosions during ascent, continued forward aflame for 200 yards, and
disappeared into the jungle, where it crashed.
Charles
Gregory Huston, Sergeant,
reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control, MACV-SOG. Born 29 September
1945 in Houston, Ohio. Entered service on 5 October 1965 at Cincinnati, Ohio.
Missing in action since 28
March 1968, when last seen alive and unwounded with two other Special Forces
sergeants and one Vietnamese sergeant awaiting extraction 15 miles inside Laos
northeast of Tchepone by helicopter, which was driven off by ground fire; later
search of area failed to reveal any traces of team
James
Emory Jones,
Sergeant First Class, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control,
MACV-SOG. Born 3 September 1939 in Enigma, Georgia. Entered service on 23 July
1957 at Milledgeville, Georgia.
Missing in action since 3
October 1966, when patrol was inserted 1 mile inside Laos west of the DMZ and
immediately engaged in firefight under adverse circumstances; sole survivor,
interpreter Bui Kim Tien, last heard of him when SFC. Eddie L. Williams had told
Tien, "Jones is dying and Ray is the same way."
John
Robert Jones,
Sergeant, light weapons leader, Task Force I Advisory Element. Born 20 February
1949 in Louisville, Kentucky. Entered service on I July 1968 at El Paso, Texas.
Missing in action since 5
June 1971, at Hickory Hill radio relay site north of Khe Sanh in Quang Tri
Province, which was overrun in heavy combat by a battalion-size North Vietnamese
force in adverse weather which prevented air support; he was not found despite
search by helicopter and low-flying aircraft.
Harold
William Kroske, Jr., First
Lieutenant, reconnaissance patrol leader, Command and Control South, MACV-SOG.
Born 30 July 1947 in Trenton, New Jersey. Entered service on 29 June 1966 at
Mercer, New Jersey.
Missing in action since 11
February 1969, when patrol was engaged 12 miles inside Cambodia west of Bu Dop
and he killed several hostile troops along a trail; he then motioned the point
man, Diep Chan Sang, to come with him; there was a sudden burst of gunfire,
Kroske dropped his weapon, grabbed his stomach, and fell; Spec. 4th Class Bryan
0. Stockdale tried to approach him, received no response when he called out his
name from twenty feet away, whereupon the patrol was forced to withdraw because
of heavy automatic weapons fire.
Frederick
Krupa,
Captain, platoon leader, Exploitation Company A, Task Force 2 Advisory Element.
Born 2 September 1947 in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Entered service on 25 June 1965
at Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
Missing in action since 27
April 1971, when his special commando unit was about to conduct a helicopter
insertion 2 miles from Laotian border northwest of Plei Djereng, Vietnam;
hostile forces opened up on his UH-1H helicopter when it was three feet off the
ground, and he fell forward; SCU Company A commander Ayom grabbed his right
shoulder but let go when Ayom's hand was struck by bullet; last seen lying next
to a log sprawled out on his back, not moving or making a sound, by crew chief
Sp. 4th Class Melvin C. Lew during helicopter ascent.
Glen
Oliver Lane, Sergeant
First Class, reconnaissance patrol leader, Command and Control North, MACV-SOG.
Born 24 July 1931 in Diboll, Texas. Entered service on 30 June 1951 in Odessa,
Texas.
Missing in action since 23
May 1968, after his six-man spike team "Idaho' was infiltrated just across
the Laotian border west of A Loui by helicopter on 20 May 1968, and all further
contact with patrol was lost; spike team 'Oregon' inserted into area for search
on 22 May immediately contacted large hostile force and was extracted.
Billy
Ray Laney,
Sergeant First Class, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control,
MACV-SOG. Born 21 August 1939 in Blanch, Alabama. Entered army 3 August 1960
with two years of navy service.
Missing in action since 3
June 1967, aboard CH-46 helicopter downed 15 miles inside Laos west of the A
Shau Valley; last seen by SFC. Wilklow and Nung soldier lying wounded on floor
of helicopter, between one crew member with a broken back and the door gunner
with head wound, as hostile forces approached, tossing grenades at aircraft.
James
Martin Luttrell,
Staff Sergeant, reconnaissance team member, Task Force I Advisory Element. Born
14 December 1935 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Entered service on 29 March 1954 at
Wamatosa, Wisconsin.
Missing
in action since 10 May 1971, after his long-range reconnaissance team "Asp'
was inserted into western Quang Nam Province 12 miles from Laos on 3 May 1971;
past initial radio contact, no further contact was ever made.
Dennis
Paul Neal,
Captain, reconnaissance patrol leader, Command and Control North, MACV-SOG. Born
I February 1944 in Quincy, Illinois. Entered service on 28 June 1966 in
Clearwater, Florida.
Missing in action since 31
July 1969, when his six-man patrol was attacked just prior to extraction 1.5
miles inside Laos west of Hue, and last seen by Pan and Comen, surviving
commandos, after he was severely wounded in chest by a B-40 rocket blast, when
they turned him over to take off one of his emergency UHF radios prior to
retreating because of wounds and intense fire; forward air control aircraft
heard the second emergency radio transmit "Help, help, help, for God's
sake, help," but search teams later dispatched to area were unsuccessful.
Charles
Vernon Newton,
Staff Sergeant, patrol leader, Detachment B-52 DELTA, Fifth Special Forces
Group. Born 10 May 1940 in Canadian, Texas. Entered service on 16 December 1959
at Canadian, Texas.
Missing in action since 17
April 1969, when Reconnaissance Patrol 6, which had been inserted into Thua
Thien Province on 14 April, was ambushed by numerically superior Vietcong force
9 miles from Laotian border; last heard from by radio transmission to circling
aircraft requesting assistance, whereupon radio con- tact was lost.
Robert
Duval Owen, Staff
Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control, MACV-SOG. Born 21
December 1938 in Lynchburg, Virginia. Entered service on 30 July 1954 at Pine
Bluff, Arkansas.
Missing in action since 23
May 1968, after his six-man spike team 'Idaho' was infiltrated just across the
Laotian border west of A Loui by helicopter on 20 May, and all further contact
with patrol was lost; spike team 'Oregon' inserted into area for search on 22
May immediately contacted large hostile force and was extracted.
Norman
Payne,
Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control North, MACV-SOG.
Born on 14 July 1939 in Greenville, Alabama. Entered service on 8 July 1957 at
Cleveland, Ohio.
Missing in action since 19
December 1968, when his reconnaissance team was attacked 6 miles inside Laos
west of the A Shau Valley just before nightfall; last seen by the team leader,
Sp. 4th Class Donald C. Sheppard, as Payne left the team to join another group,
which had slid down an embankment; Sheppard later followed this route along a
creek bed, but efforts to locate Payne failed. During extraction, Sheppard heard
garbled emergency radio transmission, the last word of which sounded like
"bison' (the code name for Payne), but a later ground search was blocked by
hostile activity.
Jerry
Lynn Pool,
First Lieutenant, reconnaissance patrol leader, Command and Control Central,
MACV-SOG. Born on 2 April 1944 in Sinton, Texas. Entered service on 11April 1964
at Austin, Texas.
Missing in action since 24
March 1970, when UH-1H helicopter lifted him and other team members from landing
zone in the tri-border area 14 miles inside Cambodia; aircraft racked by
explosions during ascent, continued forward aflame for 200 yards, and
disappeared into the jungle, where it crashed.
Ronald
Earl Ray,
Staff Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol leader, Command and Control North,
MACV-SOG. Born 11 August 1947 in Beaumont, Texas. Entered service on 21 June
1965 at Port Arthur, Texas.
Missing in action since 13
November 1969, when his six-man reconnaissance team was attacked and overrun 16
miles inside Laos west of Thua Thien Province; sole survivor Nguyen Van Bon
stated that Ray was hit in an exchange of gunfire, fell to the ground, groaned,
and then was silent; Bon shook him but received no response, and noted that
Ray's weapon was smashed and that Ray had been hit in the chest and arm.
John
Hartley Robertson,
Sergeant First Class, operations sergeant, FOB #1, Command and Control North,
MACV-SOG. Born 25 October 1936 in Birmingham, Alabama. Entered service on 15
June 1954 at Birmingham, Alabama.
Missing in action since 20
May 1968, when aboard a Vietnamese H-34 helicopter on a medical evacuation
mission 4 miles inside Laos south of A Shau; as helicopter was landing it was
struck by hostile fire, smashed into the trees, and burst into flames.
Vietnamese ground unit could not reach the wreckage, and no survivors were
spotted.
Robert
Francis Scherdin,
Private First Class, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control North,
MACV-SOG. Born 14 February 1947 in Somerville, New Jersey. Entered service on 15
August 1967 at Newark, New Jersey.
Missing in action since 29
December 1968, when part of the rear element of a reconnaissance team that was
split during a skirmish 4 miles inside Cambodia west of Dak To; Montagnard
soldier Nguang in same element saw him fall on his right side and tried to help
him stand up, but Scherdin only groaned and would not get up; Nguang was then
wounded himself and realized he had been left by the other three Vietnamese of
the rear element, whereupon he left Scherdin and was extracted along with the
remainder of the team.
Mike
John Scott,
Sergeant First Class, aerial observer, Command and Control Central, MACV-SOG.
Born 2 September 1932 in Gostynin, Poland. Entered service on 13 September 1956
at Newark, New Jersey.
Missing in action since 13
May 1969, when aboard an aircraft of the 219th Aviation Company, piloted by Lt.
Bruce C. Bessor, just inside the Laotian border west of Kham Due, attempting to
locate ground reconnaissance team whose members heard aircraft engine noise
followed by fifteen rounds of 37-mm fire and engine sputtering but no sound of
crash, then a large volume of rifle fire from same direction. Efforts to locate
the aircraft failed.
Lee
D. Scurlock, Jr.,
Staff Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control, MACV-SOG.
Born 10 November 1943 in Restful Lake, Ohio. Entered service on 22 September
1961 at Restful Lake, Ohio.
Missing in action since 21
December 1967, during extraction of team on Laotian-Cambodian boundary of the
tri-border region 18 miles west of
Vietnam, while climbing a rope ladder to a helicopter ("Gator 376'') of the
119th Aviation Company; he climbed only three rungs on first attempt before
losing grip, removed rucksack and radio, and slowly climbed ladder, appearing
weak and possibly hurt as the door gunner and a Special Forces sergeant shouted
encouragement; just before he reached their outstretched hands, he fell off the
ladder fifty feet to the ground, landed on his neck and head, and rolled down
hillside until a small tree stopped his movement. The helicopter came under
automatic weapons fire and was forced from the area.
Leo
Earl Seymour,
Staff Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol leader, Command and Control, MACV-SOG.
Born 14 May 1942 in Sayre, Pennsylvania. Entered army 28 June 1963 with four
years' marine service.
Missing in action since 3
July 1967, when his reconnaissance team 'Texas" was readying ambush
positions near a trail junction I I miles inside Laos northwest of Ben Het in
the Dale Xow river valley; two large hostile columns converged and noticed a
propaganda poster tacked to a tree that had not been there previously and began
searching area, spotting the forward security element, which opened fire; team
split up by skirmish, and upon rallying a distance away could not find Seymour.
Jerry
Michael Shriver,
Sergeant First Class, exploitation platoon leader, Command and Control South,
MACV-SOG. Born 24 September 1941 in DeFuniak Springs, Florida. Entered service
on 9 December 1958 at Sacramento, California.
Missing in action since 24
April 1969, when his platoon was engaged by intense fire 1.5 miles inside Laos
west of the DMZ's southern boundary of Vietnam; last seen by Capt. Paul D.
Cahill, moving against machine gun bunkers and entering the wood line, whereupon
he continued radio contact until transmission ceased. Ten air strikes and 1,500
rockets were required to extract the few survivors of the platoon from the
battlefield.
Donald
Monroe Shue,
Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control North, MACV-SOG.
Born 29 August 1949 in Concord, North Carolina. Entered service on 26 June 1967
at Charlotte, North Carolina.
Missing in action since 3
November 1969, when his recon- naissance patrol was attacked by a numerically
superior force 30 miles inside Laos near Ban Chakeny Tai, and he was hit by
grenade fragments; last seen lying wounded on the ground as their position was
about to be overrun, as related by an indigenous team member who evaded capture.
Willie
Ernest Stark,
Sergeant First Class, patrol leader, Detachment B-52 DELTA, Fifth Special Forces
Group. Born 7 October 1932 in Martinsburg, Nebraska. Entered service on 21 July
1950 at Waterbury, Nebraska.
Missing in action since 2
December 1966, 1.5 miles inside Laos west of the DMZ with a reconnaissance
patrol on 29 November 1966, which had two skirmishes with Vietcong, and last
seen wounded in thigh and chest and being guarded by S. Sgt. Russell P. Bott, as
related by Vietnamese patrol survivors.
Madison
Alexander Strohlein, Sergeant,
parachutist commando, Task Force I Advisory Element. Born 17 May 1948 in
Abington, Pennsylvania. Entered service on 8 July 1968 at Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania.
Missing in action since 22 June 1971, after being
parachuted into the Ta Ko area of Vietnam at night on a reconnaissance mission
with Sgt. Maj. William D. Waugh and SFC. James 0. Bath; last heard from by radio
requesting evacuation because of injuries; his transmissions were monitored
until I 1:00
A.M., when
he stated hostile forces were approaching; thereafter transmissions ceased.
Rescue team inserted on 23 June found only his weapon, scattered gear, and
indications that his parachute had been pulled from a tree.
William
Wentworth Stubbs,
Staff Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control Central,
MACV-SOG. Born 6 August 1949 in Oak Harbor, Washington. Entered service on 26
October 1967 at Newport, Washington.
Missing in action since 20
October 1969, when his recon- naissance team was attacked 20 miles inside Laos
northeast of Nakhon Phanom and he was at the point of immediate contact;
according to surviving indigenous patrol members, three bursts of automatic fire
were directed at him from a distance of two feet, striking him in the head,
followed by three grenades thrown onto his position. The rest of patrol was
unable to move up the steep slope to reach him and were forced to withdraw five
minutes later because of renewed hostile assault.
Randolph
Bothwell Suber,
Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control North, MACV-SOG.
Born 22 May 1947 at Albuquerque, New Mexico. Entered ser-vice on October 26,
1967, at Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Missing in action since 13
November 1969, when his six- man reconnaissance team was attacked and overrun 16
miles inside Laos west of Thua Thien Province; sole survivor Nhuyen Van Bon
stated that he last saw Suber trying to gain contact on his URC-10 emergency
radio, then pick up his weapon and aim at four approaching hostile soldiers, but
that the rifle did not fire because it became jammed, and Suber was hit
immediately afterward and fell to the ground; Bon called to him, but he did not
move or answer, and Bon was forced to leave the area.
Glenn
Ernest Tubbs, Staff
Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control South, MACV-SOG.
Born 24 January 1940 in Sulphur Springs, Texas. Entered service on 21 June 1959
at Olton, Texas.
Missing since 13 January
1970, when his reconnaissance team was crossing the Se San River close to the
Cambodian border 12 miles northwest of Duc Co; Tubbs was the last member of the
team to cross; near the center of the channel he was swept from the rope by the
swift current, tried to swim against the current, and was last seen when he went
under for the sixth time while being carried over some deep rapids about fifty
feet downstream from the rope. Team members chased after him, two by swimming
back across the stream, but he had disappeared.
Gunther
Herbert Wald, Staff
Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control North, MACV-SOG.
Born 7 January 1944 in Frankfurt, Germany. Entered army on 13 June 1967 with
four years' marine service.
Missing
in action since 3 November 1969, when his reconnaissance patrol was attacked by
a numerically superior force 30 miles inside Laos near Ban Chakevy Tai,
whereupon he was hit by a grenade while trying to make radio contact; last seen
lying on the ground with multiple wounds and possibly dead as their position was
about to be overrun; related by an indigenous member, Pong, who evaded capture.
Lewis
Clark Walton, Staff
Sergeant, reconnaissance team member, Task Force I Advisory Element. Born 13 May
1934 in Providence, Rhode Island. Entered service on 21 June 1952 at Providence,
Rhode Island.
Missing in action since 10
May 1971, after his long-range reconnaissance team 'Asp' was inserted into
western Quang Nam Province 12 miles from Laos on 3 May; past initial radio
contact, no further contact was ever made.
Charles
Edward White,
Sergeant First Class, reconnaissance patrol member, Command and Control North,
MACV-SOG. Born on 18 May 1933 in Union Town, Alabama. Entered service on 23 May
1950 at Columbus, Georgia.
Missing in action since 29
January 1968, when he was being extracted by McGuire rig hoist by helicopter 16
miles inside Cambodia west of Kontum along with team members Nang and Khong;
after being radioed by White that the trio was ready to be lifted out, the pilot
increased his altitude to 200 feet, at which point White fell into the jungle.
Later ground search on 31 January found path that falling body made through
jungle canopy into thick bamboo, which was surmised as being enough foliage to
have safely broken his fall, but no trace was ever found of him.
Peter
Joe Wilson,
Staff Sergeant, reconnaissance patrol leader, Command and Control Central,
MACV-SOG. Born 23 August 1938 in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania. Entered service on
17 February 1961 at Long Beach, New York.
Missing in action since 19
October 1970, when his recon- naissance patrol was attacked 2 miles inside Laos
in the tri-border area southwest of Ben Het and forced to abandon the
battlefield with hostile forces in close pursuit; last seen by Sgt. John M.
Baker when Wilson directed him to the front of the patrol and told him to
continue to the east if the column was split; at that time Wilson was covering
the rear of the patrol and assisting a wounded indigenous solider, Djuit; later
Baker heard Wilson transmit "May Day, May Day" on his emergency radio
and the sounds of a firefight from the direction of the separated patrol
element.
Remains
Recovered
Frank
Collins Parrish, Sergeant First Class, senior
medical specialist, Detachment A-411, Fifth Special Forces Group. Born 19
September 1931 in Big Springs, Texas. Entered service on 14 October 1948 at
Cleburne, Texas.
Missing in action since 16
January 1968, near My Phuoc Tay, when camp strike force was involved in a
firefight; CIDG and LLDB survivors reported that the Vietcong captured and
summarily executed him, but remains were not recovered until 30 April 1973.
George
Quanmo, Major, deputy commander, FOB #3,
Command and Control North, MACV-SOG. Born 10 June 1940 in Lynn, Massachusetts.
Entered service on 23 October 1958 at Averill Park, New York.
Disappeared on 14 April
1968, when aboard a Vietnamese U- 17 aircraft (tail number XT) flown by Chinese
contract pilot, as courier en route from Khe Sanh to Da Nang. Remains recovered
on 28 June 1974.
Samuel
Kamu Toomey, III, Maj 04, CCN
S-3, Operations Officer; Raymond
Clark Stacks,
1LT 0-2 of Tenn.; Klaus Dieter Scholz,
SSGT E-6 of Texas; Arthur Edward Baden Jr. SGT E-5 of New Jersey, Richard
Allen Fitts, SP/5 of
Mass.; Michael Howard
Mein, SP/4 of
New York; Gary Russell Labohn, SP/4 of Michigan, USASF, CCN, Da
Nang, Ops 35. All were aboard a Vietnamese Air Force CH-34 helicopter returning
from a visual recon of target areas based on a "Spot Report" by RT
Sidewinder of a NVA cache across the boarder. The aircraft was shot down from an
altitude of 3,000 feet by 37mm antiaircraft fire, crashed and exploded 10 miles
inside Laos east of Tchepone. No ground search was initiated due to the
crash site being in a denied area. On Mar 23, 1990 these seven American soldiers
remains were buried in Arlington National Cemetery their remains were recovered
from the crash site in Mar 89.
Source:
USARV USPW/CI detainee files and MIA Board Proceedings of Fifth Special Forces
Group and MACV-SOG
From:
MEDAL OF HONOR, One Mans Journey from Poverty and Prejudice: MSgt. Roy P.
Benavidez USA SF (Ret.) with John R. Craig