VA-152

Al Headly became XO for the 1967 cruise, and was last heard from retired in the greater Pensacola area.

LT John (Jack) Anthony Feldhaus was shot down over North Vietnam October 6, 1966.

Jim Harmon was the star of the 1967 cruise, later commanded the first EA-6B squadron at Whidbey Island, and now lives in the Fallon area.

Eric Schade was living in Florida in 1988. (See related story below)

Don Zambori died in a crash after his engine caught fire coming out of Lemoore in early 1967.

Jerry Garvey flew for Pan American for many years. He died of cancer about six years ago.

LTJG James (Jim) Alvin Beene was shot down on July 11 1966 and his body was never recovered. He was born on July 11, 1939 and joined the Navy in Burbank California

ENS Darwin Joel Thomas took off from the USS Oriskany October 14 1966 on an armed reconnaissance mission over North Vietnam. Over the target area, ENS Thomas fired his rockets at a suspected target and then, as his wingman watched, ENS Thomass A-1H Skyraider crashed amid a fireball. The incident was designated REFNO 0495. Ensign Thomas was assigned to the same squadron as Jack Feldhaus and the recorded location for his crash site is approximately 18 kilometers from that of Jack Feldhaus. He entered the Navy in Santa Clara California. The Vietnam Vieteran's Association chapter 201 in Santa Clara/San Jose is named memorially for him. He was married.

Sidney (Sid) Lawrence Grueser, CWO4, was the maintenance officer in 1966. After leaving VA152 in 1967 he was transferred to Pensacola. He remained there until he completed his 30 years in the Navy in 1970 and retired. He and his wife resided in Pensacola until their deaths. He passed away after a harsh and fast onslaught of acute leukemia in December 1989 and his wife, Sammy Lee, followed in May 1991.

The following two officers joined the squadron about the time Jack was shot down and their names aren't inclued on the wooden plaque.

John Spiegel is a retired Foreign Service Officer with the State Department.

LTJG Robin (Rob) Bern Cassell was shot down on July 15, 1967 while leading a flight of A1-H aircraft on a daytime armed coastal reconnaissance mission over North Vietnam. While attacking water craft near Cua Dai and Thanh Hoa his aircraft was hit by automatic weapon fire and after radioing "I'm hit" crashed in the sea. He was listed as "Killed in Action, Body Not Recovered". He was born December 6 1941 in Little Rock Arkansas. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1964. His home of record was Ft. Huachuca Arizona. He was married.

J.J.Buterbaugh ADR2, served 1955-1975. On the U.S.S. Oriskany with VA-152 1965-1966.

LCDR Eric Shade had also been with VA-152 on the USS Oriskany the prior year. Following is the story of what happened on November 17, 1965.

BOWLING, ROY HOWARD "HAP"
Remains Returned 18 March 1977

Name: Roy Howard "Hap" Bowling
Rank/Branch: O4/US Navy
Unit: Attack Squadron 163, USS ORISKANY (CVA 34)
Date of Birth: 16 December 1929 (Cuba NM)
Home City of Record: San Bernardino CA
Date of Loss: 17 November 1965
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 205000N 1062700E (XJ509042)
Status (in 1973): Prisoner of War
Category: 1
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: A4E
Refno: 0194
Other Personnel in Incident: Jesse Taylor Jr. (remains returned)

Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project 15 May 1990 from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK 1998.

REMARKS: SRV RET REMS TO PCOM 770318

SYNOPSIS: The USS ORISKANY was a World War II-era carrier on duty in Vietnam as early as 1964. The ORISKANY at one time carried the RF8A (number 144608) flown by Maj. John H. Glenn, the famous Marine astronaut (and later Senator) flew in his 1957 transcontinental flight. In October, 1966 the ORISKANY endured a tragic fire which killed 44 men onboard, but was soon back on station. In 1972, the ORISKANY had an at-sea accident which resulted in the loss of one of its aircraft elevators, and later lost a screw that put the carrier into drydock in Yokosuka, Japan for major repairs, thus delaying its involvement until the late months of the war.

There were many strikes in the "Iron Triangle" area of Vietnam - Hanoi, Haiphong and Thanh Hoa - in the early weeks of ROLLING THUNDER operations in 1965. The Air Wing 16 commander, CDR Harry T. Jenkins, Jr. had been captured four days when when the Saints of Attack Squadron 163 launched on a strike on the Hai Duong Bridge halfway between Hanoi and Haiphong in North Vietnam on November 17, 1965. On that day, a number of aircraft launched from the ORISKANY inlcuding LCDR Roy H. "Hap" Bowling, the squadron's operations officer and the pilot of an A4E Skyhawk light attack aircraft.

LTCDR Bowling was flying a high speed, low-level retirement after attacking the target near the city of Hai Duong, Hai Hung Province, North Vietnam, when his wingman, flying immediately behind him, observed the starboard horizontal stabilizer fly off the aircraft, having been hit by enemy fire. The aircraft then rolled to the right and flew into the ground.

A third pilot in the flight momentarily observed a deployed parachute at an altitude of about 100 feet. A fourth pilot in the flight flying past the parachute a few seconds later stated he saw the pilot hanging in the parachute appeared limp, and was not wearing his helmet. About a minute later, two airborne pilots observed a collapsed parachute on the ground in the vicinity of a well-populated area. One pilot saw what he described as "an inert form" under the collapsed parachute. The pilot stated that within three minutes time, the parachute had disappeared.

Although search and rescue efforts in Vietnam were the best history had seen, only one out of six Americans shot down in the Iron Triangle region who were alive on the ground were rescued. The area was heavily populated, and villagers were eager to seize "air pirates" who came their way. It was also common for entire aircraft to be carried away, piece by piece, in an amazingly short period of time to reappear as parts of huts, souvenirs, or melted into a variety of objects.

Two A-1H pilots from VA-152, Eric Shade and Jesse Taylor, Jr., went in to reconnoiter Bowling's position to see if there was a chance he could be extracted by helicopter.

Both A1H aircraft sustained battle damage from the AAA fire. One pilot, Eric Shade, was able to return safely to the USS Oriskany. The second rescue aircraft, piloted by Jesse Taylor, succeeded in crossing the coastline before crashing into marshy shoals less then a mile east of the coast line and 1 mile south of the mouth of a river that emptied into the Gulf of Tonkin. Other pilots believed Lt. Cmdr. Taylor was unable to exit his aircraft before it impacted the shoals. This crash site was located approximately 60 miles southeast of Hanoi, 29 miles southeast of the Hai Duong bridge, 16 miles south and slightly southwest of Haiphong and 13 miles south and slightly southeast of the Hai Phong Kien An MiG base.

Rescue efforts continued until it became clear that neither downed pilot could be recovered. At the time formal SAR efforts were terminated, Roy "Hap" Bowling was listed Missing in Action. He was maintained in that status until the war ended. Jesse Taylor, was listed Killed in Action/Body Not Recovered.

When 591 Americans were released from Vietnamese prisoner of war camps in 1973, Bowling and Taylor were not among them. The Vietnamese denied any knowledge of the two naval officers.

Then in 1975, the Vietnamese, in a gesture of "good will" presented the remains of Jesse Taylor Jr. to the U.S. The U.S. gratefully accepted the "gift" of remains which should have been returned years before.

Then on March 18, 1977, the remains of Hap Bowling were given to a U.S. presidentially-appointed commission visiting Hanoi. Roy Bowling's remains were accepted without question.

A Vietnamese defector stated in Congressional testimony that Vietnam stockpiles hundreds of sets of American remains. Congress believed him. He also testified that Vietnam holds live American prisoners, that he had seen them. Congress says he is lying, although nearly 10,000 reports help substantiate that Americans are being held alive. The U.S. and Vietnamese "progress" at a snail's pace, while totally ignoring the tremendous weight of evidence that their priority should be those Americans still alive as captives. Meanwhile, thousands of lives are spent in the most tortured state imaginable - unable to grieve, unable to rejoice. They wait.

Roy H. Bowling was promoted to the rank of Captain during the period he was maintained Prisoner of War.