JOHNSON, DALE ALONZO

Name: Dale Alonzo Johnson
Rank/Branch: O4/US Air Force
Unit: (unknown, per USAF)
Date of Birth: 17 September 1929
Home City of Record: Elizabethton TN
Date of Loss: 27 October 1966
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 173659N 1062757E (XE556501)
Status (in 1973): Killed/Body Not Recovered
Category: 3
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: F105D

Other Personnel in Incident: (none missing)

Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project 01 September 1990 from one or more of
the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with
POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews.

REMARKS:

SYNOPSIS: The F105 Thunderchief ("Thud"), in its various versions, flew more
missions against North Vietnam than any other U.S. aircraft. It also suffered
more losses, partially due to its vulnerability, which was constantly under
revision. The versatile aircraft was also credited with downing 25 Russian MiGs.

Maj. Dale A. Johnson was the pilot of an F105D aircraft on a combat mission over
North Vietnam on October 27, 1966. While his aircraft was in a dive to make a
bombing run near the city of Quang Khe, it burst into flames and began to break
up in the air. No parachute was seen and no emergency radio beeper signals were
heard. Others in the flight felt certain Johnson went down with the plane and
could not have survived.

Dale A. Johnson is listed among the missing because his remains were never
recovered. Others who are missing do not have such clear-cut cases. Some were
known captives; some were photographed as they were led by their guards. Some
were in radio contact with search teams, while others simply disappeared.

Since the war ended, over 250,000 interviews have been conducted with those who
claim to know about Americans still alive in Southeast Asia, and several million
documents have been studied. U.S. Government experts cannot seem to agree
whether Americans are there alive or not. Detractors say it would be far too
politically difficult to bring the men they believe to be alive home, and the
U.S. is content to negotiate for remains.

Well over 1000 first-hand, eye-witness reports of American prisoners still alive
in Southeast Asia have been received by 1990. Most of them are still classified.
If, as the U.S. seems to believe, the men are all dead, why the secrecy after so
many years? If the men are alive, why are they not home?


