1
D Troop / Re: Hello Vietnam
« Last post by Fred Lohr (D Troop 68-69) on December 30, 2018, 12:59:40 PM »Glad you made it back! 
Recent Posts
2
D Troop / Hello Vietnam
« Last post by James Cregan (D. Troop) on November 07, 2018, 08:59:46 AM »Fifty years ago today, on November 7th 1968 I was landing in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam starting my tour of duty. I was just another FNG wondering what the next year has in-store for me. Man, I had no fucking idea what was waiting for me. November 13th 1968 I found my way to D. Troop 2/1 Cav. Two days later I was flying in a LOH6-A scout helicopter hanging out the left front door with a M60 in my hands tempting fate as I flew low over the hostile skies of Vietnam. Thanks to some exceptional pilots I made it back to base after every mission.
3
HQ Troop / Re: Where are all the HQ troops ?
« Last post by Dai Uy on March 01, 2018, 08:31:59 PM »As I browse through the web site I hardly see any participation in this fine organization from HHT, Where are you guys ? Just log onto the guestbook or the forum and leave your mark. Don't wait for the reunions to look up old friends because they may not be able to make it to D.C. We are not getting any younger! Halfdollarbill HHT 2-70 to 10-70 Song Mao
4
General Vietnam / Re: R.I.P.
« Last post by Fred Lohr (D Troop 68-69) on April 08, 2017, 07:32:33 PM »Retired Lt. Gen. Harold G. "Hal" Moore, the American hero known for saving most of his men in the first major battle between the U.S. and North Vietnamese armies, has died. He was 94.
Joseph Galloway, who with Moore co-authored the book "We Were Soldiers Once ... and Young," confirmed Saturday to The Associated Press that Moore died late Friday in his sleep at his home in Auburn, Alabama.
Galloway said Moore, his friend of 51 years, died two days shy of his 95th birthday.
"There's something missing on this earth now. We've lost a great warrior, a great soldier, a great human being and my best friend. They don't make them like him anymore," Galloway said.
Moore was best known for his actions at the 1965 Battle of Ia Drang, where he was a lieutenant colonel in command of the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment. His actions were later reflected in the movie "We Were Soldiers" in which actor Mel Gibson portrayed Moore. The book tells what happened to virtually every trooper involved in the 34-day campaign and the climactic four-day battle in which 234 Americans died at landing zones X-Ray and Albany in November 1965.
Galloway, a former war correspondent for United Press International, said Moore was "without question, one of the finest commanders I ever saw in action."
"Those of us who survived Landing Zone X-Ray survived because of his brilliance of command. I think every one of us thought we were going to die at that place except Hal Moore. He was certain we were going to win that fight and he was right," Galloway recalled.
Galloway and Moore wrote a second book, "We Are Soldiers Still," which he said grew out of a journey back to the battlefields of Vietnam 25 years later. "We went back and walked those old battlefields. At the end of the day, Hal Moore and Col. Nguyen Huu An, the North Vietnamese commander, stood in a circle in the clearing and prayed for the souls of every man who died on both sides."
He said the two shared an "instant brotherhood that grew out of combat."
"When we were discussing the book contract with a lawyer/agent, he asked to see the contract between me and Hal Moore, and Hal Moore said 'I don't think you understand. This isn't just a matter of money. We have trusted each other with our lives in battle and we have no contract before that.' I absolutely agreed."
On a Facebook page managed by Moore's family, relatives said he died on the birthday of his wife, Julia, who died in 2004 after 55 years of marriage.
"Mom called Dad home on her day," the statement said. "After having a stroke last week, Dad was more lethargic and had difficulty speaking, but he had always fought his way back."
Before serving in Vietnam, Moore graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point and then commanded a battalion in the newly formed air mobile 11th Air Assault Division at Fort Benning.
Born in Bardstown, Kentucky, he served in the U.S. military for 32 years.
Galloway said the family has tentatively scheduled a religious service Friday in Auburn and a memorial service at the National Infantry Museum at Fort Benning Army Base in Columbus, Georgia.
Joseph Galloway, who with Moore co-authored the book "We Were Soldiers Once ... and Young," confirmed Saturday to The Associated Press that Moore died late Friday in his sleep at his home in Auburn, Alabama.
Galloway said Moore, his friend of 51 years, died two days shy of his 95th birthday.
"There's something missing on this earth now. We've lost a great warrior, a great soldier, a great human being and my best friend. They don't make them like him anymore," Galloway said.
Moore was best known for his actions at the 1965 Battle of Ia Drang, where he was a lieutenant colonel in command of the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment. His actions were later reflected in the movie "We Were Soldiers" in which actor Mel Gibson portrayed Moore. The book tells what happened to virtually every trooper involved in the 34-day campaign and the climactic four-day battle in which 234 Americans died at landing zones X-Ray and Albany in November 1965.
Galloway, a former war correspondent for United Press International, said Moore was "without question, one of the finest commanders I ever saw in action."
"Those of us who survived Landing Zone X-Ray survived because of his brilliance of command. I think every one of us thought we were going to die at that place except Hal Moore. He was certain we were going to win that fight and he was right," Galloway recalled.
Galloway and Moore wrote a second book, "We Are Soldiers Still," which he said grew out of a journey back to the battlefields of Vietnam 25 years later. "We went back and walked those old battlefields. At the end of the day, Hal Moore and Col. Nguyen Huu An, the North Vietnamese commander, stood in a circle in the clearing and prayed for the souls of every man who died on both sides."
He said the two shared an "instant brotherhood that grew out of combat."
"When we were discussing the book contract with a lawyer/agent, he asked to see the contract between me and Hal Moore, and Hal Moore said 'I don't think you understand. This isn't just a matter of money. We have trusted each other with our lives in battle and we have no contract before that.' I absolutely agreed."
On a Facebook page managed by Moore's family, relatives said he died on the birthday of his wife, Julia, who died in 2004 after 55 years of marriage.
"Mom called Dad home on her day," the statement said. "After having a stroke last week, Dad was more lethargic and had difficulty speaking, but he had always fought his way back."
Before serving in Vietnam, Moore graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point and then commanded a battalion in the newly formed air mobile 11th Air Assault Division at Fort Benning.
Born in Bardstown, Kentucky, he served in the U.S. military for 32 years.
Galloway said the family has tentatively scheduled a religious service Friday in Auburn and a memorial service at the National Infantry Museum at Fort Benning Army Base in Columbus, Georgia.
5
General Vietnam / Re: Missing in Action Returned
« Last post by Fred Lohr (D Troop 68-69) on March 23, 2017, 06:27:54 PM »Successful search for remains of missing SASR soldier in Vietnam
September 9, 2016 12:56pm
John Morcombe
In 2008 Private David Fisher was the last member of the Australian Army who had been killed to have his body repatriated back to Australia from Vietnam. Pictured are Australian troops preparing to board a helicopter near Nui Dat.
In 2008 Private David Fisher was the last member of the Australian Army who had been killed to have his body repatriated back to Australia from Vietnam. Pictured are Australian troops preparing to board a helicopter near Nui Dat.
THREE weeks ago a new name was added to the Manly War Memorial and blessed on Vietnam Veterans Day, August 18.
The timing of the addition of Warrant Officer Ron Lees’ name to the memorial was significant — it was the 50th anniversary of his death in Vietnam and the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan.
WO Lees was killed during the early years of the Vietnam War and his body wasn’t immediately repatriated because his family couldn’t afford the cost.
As war rolled on and the death toll mounted, the Government decided to repatriate those who fell — but not those who had already been buried in foreign soil.
Last year the Federal Government relented and in June WO Lees’ body was finally brought home, as were those of his colleagues.
Private David Fisher was one of four peninsula men killed in the Vietnam War
In 2008 Private David Fisher was the last member of the army to be repatriated from Vietnam.
WO Lees was the fourth peninsula man killed in the Vietnam War and Manly local studies librarian John MacRitchie has been investigating the other three — Warrant Officer John Bond, Major Malcolm McQualter and Private David Fisher.
What he found was that Pte Fisher was the last member of the army to be repatriated from Vietnam — and as recently as 2008 — and the third last of any Australian servicemen to be repatriated from Vietnam.
The return of the final two Australian servicemen, both members of the air force, in 2009 marked a significant day and a fitting tribute to the many Australians who spent so much time and effort searching for the service personnel whose bodies lay somewhere in Vietnam but had no known grave.
Pte Fisher was born in London in 1946 but by 1958 he was living with his family in Bolingbroke Pde, Fairlight.
By 1963 the family was living in Grandview Grove at Seaforth and by 1968 in Curban St, Balgowlah Heights. David Fisher was conscripted into the army on July 17, 1967, and was allocated to the Royal Australian Infantry.
Pte Fisher underwent Special Air Services selection in 1968 and was posted to 2 SAS Regiment in December that year and to 3 SASR in February 1969.
Australian Army soldiers checking for mines in South Vietnam
Brian Manns, of the Unrecovered War Casualties — Army unit, was involved in the successful search for Pte Fisher’s remains and wrote about it on the Australian Army’s website.
“On 27 September 1969, he was a member of an SASR patrol in an area to the west of the Nui May Tao in Long Kanh province, Vietnam,” he wrote.
“After a number of contacts, the patrol requested a ‘hot extraction’.
“During this extraction Pte Fisher fell into thick jungle from a rope that suspended him below the helicopter. Several air and ground searches over of the next week failed to find any trace of Pte Fisher.
“He was officially listed as ‘missing in action presumed dead’.”
Pte Fisher's mates from 2 Squadron Special Air Service Regiment at his Ramp Ceremony at RAAF Base Richmond.
By the end of the Vietnam War six Australian servicemen were still listed as missing in action.
This is where the Unrecovered War Casualties — Army unit comes in. It is, according to its website, “responsible for matters associated with the identification and recovery of Australian servicemen who remained unaccounted for all from all wars”.
Naturally, the greatest number of servicemen whose remains have never been found fell on the Western Front in World War I, although there are still thousands missing from World War II.
The army’s website says the search for the six missing servicemen in Vietnam was as important as those who fell in any other conflict.
“Unrecovered War Casualties — Army commenced a careful examination of all available Australian records and unit war diaries and interviewed Australian veterans involved in the incident in which Pte Fisher was lost,” the website says.
“They also appealed to the Australian Vietnamese community for help.
“Armed with the information gathered in Australia, the team travelled to Vietnam in March 2008 to find information from local sources.
“What followed was two weeks of interviews with former Vietcong and North Vietnamese soldiers.
The rugby team of Pte David Fisher, the last missing Australian digger in Vietnam. He is pictured third from left in the back row.
“In archived documents, Unrecovered War Casualties — Army discovered a small piece of information that had previously escaped attention.
“It was a reference to the discovery of a pool of water ‘red in colour’ that was just outside of the original designated search area. The find was considered significant enough at the time for a sample of the water to be given to the 1st Australian Field Hospital for analysis.
“No record of what happened to the sample was found.
“Another key piece of information came from a member of the Australian Vietnamese community.
“He told investigators that in October of 1969 he and another soldier found the body of a ‘dead American’ (Fisher, like most SASR soldiers, wore US camouflage uniform) and had buried his body in a shallow grave beside the Suoi Sap.
“He was able to provide a detailed description of the location.
“The missing piece in the Pte Fisher puzzle was a more precise indication of where Pte Fisher may have landed.
“Details of the direction and speed of the aircraft and the time of flight before the fall were calculated and applied to a map.
“It became apparent that earlier searches had concentrated on an area too close to the roping extraction point.
“In August 2008, Unrecovered War Casualties — Army returned to Vietnam and began the careful examination of the area bordering the Suoi Sap from its confluence with the Song Ray to the newly plotted area of interest.
The names of four local men who died in the Vietnam War, including Pte David Fisher, are inscribed on the Manly War Memorial
“While examining a shallow pool of water a Vietnamese team member, close to the Suoi Sap, found a large piece of bone believed to be human.
“Also found was a piece of plastic from the inside of an Australian-issue collapsible water bladder used by the SASR in Vietnam.
“The next day, after examining a photograph of the bone fragment an Australian forensic anthropologist was able to confirm that it was most likely the lower end of a human femur (thigh bone). This was supported by the director of the Military Forensic Institute in Hanoi.
“After Vietnamese Army engineers conducted an unexploded ordnance search, work commenced to recover Pte Fisher’s remains before the return of the wet season. Following a week of careful excavation more remains were unearthed along with Pte Fisher’s dog tags.
“Pte David John Elkington Fisher was repatriated to Australia by the Army in October 2008.”
He was cremated at Macquarie Park on October 14, 2008, with full military honours. The two airmen who were still missing were found in 2009, so all Australian servicemen killed in Vietnam have been accounted for.
September 9, 2016 12:56pm
John Morcombe
In 2008 Private David Fisher was the last member of the Australian Army who had been killed to have his body repatriated back to Australia from Vietnam. Pictured are Australian troops preparing to board a helicopter near Nui Dat.
In 2008 Private David Fisher was the last member of the Australian Army who had been killed to have his body repatriated back to Australia from Vietnam. Pictured are Australian troops preparing to board a helicopter near Nui Dat.
THREE weeks ago a new name was added to the Manly War Memorial and blessed on Vietnam Veterans Day, August 18.
The timing of the addition of Warrant Officer Ron Lees’ name to the memorial was significant — it was the 50th anniversary of his death in Vietnam and the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan.
WO Lees was killed during the early years of the Vietnam War and his body wasn’t immediately repatriated because his family couldn’t afford the cost.
As war rolled on and the death toll mounted, the Government decided to repatriate those who fell — but not those who had already been buried in foreign soil.
Last year the Federal Government relented and in June WO Lees’ body was finally brought home, as were those of his colleagues.
Private David Fisher was one of four peninsula men killed in the Vietnam War
In 2008 Private David Fisher was the last member of the army to be repatriated from Vietnam.
WO Lees was the fourth peninsula man killed in the Vietnam War and Manly local studies librarian John MacRitchie has been investigating the other three — Warrant Officer John Bond, Major Malcolm McQualter and Private David Fisher.
What he found was that Pte Fisher was the last member of the army to be repatriated from Vietnam — and as recently as 2008 — and the third last of any Australian servicemen to be repatriated from Vietnam.
The return of the final two Australian servicemen, both members of the air force, in 2009 marked a significant day and a fitting tribute to the many Australians who spent so much time and effort searching for the service personnel whose bodies lay somewhere in Vietnam but had no known grave.
Pte Fisher was born in London in 1946 but by 1958 he was living with his family in Bolingbroke Pde, Fairlight.
By 1963 the family was living in Grandview Grove at Seaforth and by 1968 in Curban St, Balgowlah Heights. David Fisher was conscripted into the army on July 17, 1967, and was allocated to the Royal Australian Infantry.
Pte Fisher underwent Special Air Services selection in 1968 and was posted to 2 SAS Regiment in December that year and to 3 SASR in February 1969.
Australian Army soldiers checking for mines in South Vietnam
Brian Manns, of the Unrecovered War Casualties — Army unit, was involved in the successful search for Pte Fisher’s remains and wrote about it on the Australian Army’s website.
“On 27 September 1969, he was a member of an SASR patrol in an area to the west of the Nui May Tao in Long Kanh province, Vietnam,” he wrote.
“After a number of contacts, the patrol requested a ‘hot extraction’.
“During this extraction Pte Fisher fell into thick jungle from a rope that suspended him below the helicopter. Several air and ground searches over of the next week failed to find any trace of Pte Fisher.
“He was officially listed as ‘missing in action presumed dead’.”
Pte Fisher's mates from 2 Squadron Special Air Service Regiment at his Ramp Ceremony at RAAF Base Richmond.
By the end of the Vietnam War six Australian servicemen were still listed as missing in action.
This is where the Unrecovered War Casualties — Army unit comes in. It is, according to its website, “responsible for matters associated with the identification and recovery of Australian servicemen who remained unaccounted for all from all wars”.
Naturally, the greatest number of servicemen whose remains have never been found fell on the Western Front in World War I, although there are still thousands missing from World War II.
The army’s website says the search for the six missing servicemen in Vietnam was as important as those who fell in any other conflict.
“Unrecovered War Casualties — Army commenced a careful examination of all available Australian records and unit war diaries and interviewed Australian veterans involved in the incident in which Pte Fisher was lost,” the website says.
“They also appealed to the Australian Vietnamese community for help.
“Armed with the information gathered in Australia, the team travelled to Vietnam in March 2008 to find information from local sources.
“What followed was two weeks of interviews with former Vietcong and North Vietnamese soldiers.
The rugby team of Pte David Fisher, the last missing Australian digger in Vietnam. He is pictured third from left in the back row.
“In archived documents, Unrecovered War Casualties — Army discovered a small piece of information that had previously escaped attention.
“It was a reference to the discovery of a pool of water ‘red in colour’ that was just outside of the original designated search area. The find was considered significant enough at the time for a sample of the water to be given to the 1st Australian Field Hospital for analysis.
“No record of what happened to the sample was found.
“Another key piece of information came from a member of the Australian Vietnamese community.
“He told investigators that in October of 1969 he and another soldier found the body of a ‘dead American’ (Fisher, like most SASR soldiers, wore US camouflage uniform) and had buried his body in a shallow grave beside the Suoi Sap.
“He was able to provide a detailed description of the location.
“The missing piece in the Pte Fisher puzzle was a more precise indication of where Pte Fisher may have landed.
“Details of the direction and speed of the aircraft and the time of flight before the fall were calculated and applied to a map.
“It became apparent that earlier searches had concentrated on an area too close to the roping extraction point.
“In August 2008, Unrecovered War Casualties — Army returned to Vietnam and began the careful examination of the area bordering the Suoi Sap from its confluence with the Song Ray to the newly plotted area of interest.
The names of four local men who died in the Vietnam War, including Pte David Fisher, are inscribed on the Manly War Memorial
“While examining a shallow pool of water a Vietnamese team member, close to the Suoi Sap, found a large piece of bone believed to be human.
“Also found was a piece of plastic from the inside of an Australian-issue collapsible water bladder used by the SASR in Vietnam.
“The next day, after examining a photograph of the bone fragment an Australian forensic anthropologist was able to confirm that it was most likely the lower end of a human femur (thigh bone). This was supported by the director of the Military Forensic Institute in Hanoi.
“After Vietnamese Army engineers conducted an unexploded ordnance search, work commenced to recover Pte Fisher’s remains before the return of the wet season. Following a week of careful excavation more remains were unearthed along with Pte Fisher’s dog tags.
“Pte David John Elkington Fisher was repatriated to Australia by the Army in October 2008.”
He was cremated at Macquarie Park on October 14, 2008, with full military honours. The two airmen who were still missing were found in 2009, so all Australian servicemen killed in Vietnam have been accounted for.
6
General Vietnam / Re: Missing in Action Returned
« Last post by Fred Lohr (D Troop 68-69) on March 23, 2017, 06:09:28 PM »BOGOTA - A U.S. Marine from Bogota, missing in action since 1969, has been identified through DNA found at the scene of a military plane crash, according to the U.S. Department of Defense.
Marine Corps Reserve 1st Lt. William C. Ryan (Vietnam Veterans Memorial)
"Marine Corps Reserve 1st Lt. William C. Ryan, missing from the Vietnam War, has now been accounted for," the he Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency said in a statement.
On May 11, 1969, Ryan was the radar intercept officer of an F-4B aircraft on a combat mission over Laos. The aircraft was hit by enemy fire and the pilot lost control, calling several times for Ryan to eject but receiving no response, according to the agency.
The pilot ejected before the aircraft crashed; Ryan did not not.
The pilot was rescued and Ryan was declared dead later that day.
In 1990, investigators with the United States and Vietnam visited the crash site and spoke with witnesses. According to NorthJersey.com, even though Ryan's aircraft seat was found at the scene, the investigation dragged for years.
Between May 2012 and 2016, six different excavations were conducted, according to NorthJersey.com.
According to his biography, Ryan was born April 24, 1944 in Hoboken and grew up in Bogota. He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 1966 and earned his wings at naval flight training school in Pensacola, Fla.
Ryan was sent to Vietnam in Aug. 1968 and listed as missing in action on May 11, 1969.
In all, he flew over 300 combat missions and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and numerous Strike/Flight Air Medals.
Ryan is survived by his wife, Judy, and a son, Michael, who was only a year old when his father was missing in action.
Services will be held at Arlington National Cemetery on May 10.
Marine Corps Reserve 1st Lt. William C. Ryan (Vietnam Veterans Memorial)
"Marine Corps Reserve 1st Lt. William C. Ryan, missing from the Vietnam War, has now been accounted for," the he Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency said in a statement.
On May 11, 1969, Ryan was the radar intercept officer of an F-4B aircraft on a combat mission over Laos. The aircraft was hit by enemy fire and the pilot lost control, calling several times for Ryan to eject but receiving no response, according to the agency.
The pilot ejected before the aircraft crashed; Ryan did not not.
The pilot was rescued and Ryan was declared dead later that day.
In 1990, investigators with the United States and Vietnam visited the crash site and spoke with witnesses. According to NorthJersey.com, even though Ryan's aircraft seat was found at the scene, the investigation dragged for years.
Between May 2012 and 2016, six different excavations were conducted, according to NorthJersey.com.
According to his biography, Ryan was born April 24, 1944 in Hoboken and grew up in Bogota. He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 1966 and earned his wings at naval flight training school in Pensacola, Fla.
Ryan was sent to Vietnam in Aug. 1968 and listed as missing in action on May 11, 1969.
In all, he flew over 300 combat missions and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and numerous Strike/Flight Air Medals.
Ryan is survived by his wife, Judy, and a son, Michael, who was only a year old when his father was missing in action.
Services will be held at Arlington National Cemetery on May 10.
7
All Troopers / Holiday Greetings
« Last post by fingerprints on December 12, 2015, 08:40:59 PM »I'm Rich Hansell, driver of A-28 wishing all of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy 2016. As I was celebrating my birthday in the back of A-28 on September 26, 1967 I never thought I would see 2015. My prayers go to all my comrades in arms who did not get to celebrate 2015. Scouts Out!
8
General Discussion / Re: base locations
« Last post by fingerprints on December 12, 2015, 08:25:25 PM »Hi, I was with A trp. , 2nd platoon from Sept 67 to Mar 1, 1968. I remember arriving at the main camp in the central highlands, Camp Enari. It was located just outside Pleiku. We built a forward firebase on highway 9 about 15 miles east of camp Enari. Later my platoon was sent to guard a 155mm gun harassment location on the eastern side of the Mang Yang Pass. It was located on a hill about 6 miles west of AnKhe. I do not know the GPS locations. Scouts Out!
9
B Troop / Sapper Attack
« Last post by yorkiedad on August 07, 2015, 04:01:22 PM »Does anyone remember the name of the compound that was attacked in 7/69 by sappers or know what happened to the after action report that used to be posted on this site. Thanks, Frank
10
General Vietnam / Re: Missing in Action Returned
« Last post by Fred Lohr (D Troop 68-69) on August 04, 2015, 02:13:56 PM »Soldier Missing From Vietnam War Accounted For (Phipps)
15-041 | June 08, 2015
Chief Warrant Officer 3 James L. Phipps
Chief Warrant Officer 3 James L. Phipps (Photo by Phipps Family)
The Department of Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that the remains of three U.S. servicemen, missing from the Vietnam War, have been identified and will be buried with full military honors.
Army Chief Warrant Officers 3 James L. Phipps, 24, of Mattoon, Ill., and Rainer S. Ramos, 20, of Wiesbaden, Germany, were the pilots of a UH-1C Iroquois (Huey) helicopter gunship that was shot down in Quang Tin Province, South Vietnam. Also aboard the aircraft were door gunners Staff Sgt. Warren Newton, 18, of Eugene, Ore., and Spc. Fred J. Secrist, 19, of Eugene, Ore. The crew was assigned to Troop C, 7th Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 14th Aviation Group, 1st Aviation Brigade. The crew will be buried, as a group, on June 17, at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C.
On Jan. 9, 1968, the crew was on a mission over Quang Tin Province (now part of Quang Nam Province), South Vietnam, when the Huey was struck by ground fire, causing it to crash and explode in a North Vietnamese bunker and trench system. The crew was declared missing in action. On Jan. 20, 1968, a U.S. led team recovered the body of Secrist and he was returned to his family for burial.
Between August 1993 and August 2011, U.S./Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) teams surveyed and/or excavated the site three times. From Aug. 6-21, 2011, a joint U.S./S.R.V. team recovered human remains and personal effects.
In the identification of the recovered remains, scientists from DPAA and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory (AFDIL) analyzed circumstantial evidence and used forensic identification tools, to include mitochondrial DNA, which matched Secrist’s sister and brother. Remains not individually identified represent the entire crew and will be buried as a group.
Today, 1,627 Americans remain unaccounted for from the Vietnam War. The U.S. government continues to work closely with the governments of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia to recover Americans lost during the Vietnam War.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for Americans, who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil or call (703) 699-1420.
15-041 | June 08, 2015
Chief Warrant Officer 3 James L. Phipps
Chief Warrant Officer 3 James L. Phipps (Photo by Phipps Family)
The Department of Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that the remains of three U.S. servicemen, missing from the Vietnam War, have been identified and will be buried with full military honors.
Army Chief Warrant Officers 3 James L. Phipps, 24, of Mattoon, Ill., and Rainer S. Ramos, 20, of Wiesbaden, Germany, were the pilots of a UH-1C Iroquois (Huey) helicopter gunship that was shot down in Quang Tin Province, South Vietnam. Also aboard the aircraft were door gunners Staff Sgt. Warren Newton, 18, of Eugene, Ore., and Spc. Fred J. Secrist, 19, of Eugene, Ore. The crew was assigned to Troop C, 7th Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 14th Aviation Group, 1st Aviation Brigade. The crew will be buried, as a group, on June 17, at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C.
On Jan. 9, 1968, the crew was on a mission over Quang Tin Province (now part of Quang Nam Province), South Vietnam, when the Huey was struck by ground fire, causing it to crash and explode in a North Vietnamese bunker and trench system. The crew was declared missing in action. On Jan. 20, 1968, a U.S. led team recovered the body of Secrist and he was returned to his family for burial.
Between August 1993 and August 2011, U.S./Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) teams surveyed and/or excavated the site three times. From Aug. 6-21, 2011, a joint U.S./S.R.V. team recovered human remains and personal effects.
In the identification of the recovered remains, scientists from DPAA and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory (AFDIL) analyzed circumstantial evidence and used forensic identification tools, to include mitochondrial DNA, which matched Secrist’s sister and brother. Remains not individually identified represent the entire crew and will be buried as a group.
Today, 1,627 Americans remain unaccounted for from the Vietnam War. The U.S. government continues to work closely with the governments of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia to recover Americans lost during the Vietnam War.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for Americans, who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil or call (703) 699-1420.