Loss Date: 22 January 1966
Country of Loss: North Vietnam/Over Water
Loss Coordinates: 193958N 1072159E (YG481761)
Status (in 1973): Missing In Action
Category: 5
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: S2D
Other Personnel In Incident: Edmund Frenya; Robert Sennett;
Erwin Templin (all missing)
Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project with the assistance
of one or more of the following: raw data from U.S. Government
agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families, published
sources, interviews.
Date Compiled: 15 March 1990
REMARKS:
SYNOPSIS: In early 1966, there were several search and rescue (SAR)
destroyers parked off the coast of North Vietnam in the Gulf of
Tonkin. When the attack and fighter people would egress, they would
be there to assist a cripple or pick up a guy who had to punch out
or ditch. During the night when the strike activity would ebb, the
SAR DDs would steam around their small areas waiting for the next
day's activities. It was during these night and early morning hours
that high speed surface contacts would probe their positions.
The "Stoof" (S2D) helped provide air cover for these surface ships.
The Stoof was technically an anti-submarine aircraft, but had little
call to exercise submarine missions in Vietnam. There were only a few
of such planes assigned to Vietnam at all.
If a ship thought its position was being probed by enemy boats,
it would vector the Stoof out over the target. The Stoof tactic was
to drop a parachute retarded flare from about 10,000 feet over the
target, circle back around at a low altitude (about 300 feet) and
investigate. If the target was unfriendly, then the S2 would engage
and destroy it. There was a certain amount of risk involved in these
operations, as the Vietnamese PT boats had radar that enabled them to
strike with no visual contact.
In the dead of night on January 22, 1966, a Stoof launched from
the USS Hornet with pilot William S. Forman and crewmembers
Edwin B. Templin, Robert R. Sennett and Edmund H. Frenyea. Their
mission was to investigate an unidentified bogie. Their progress was
under the advisory control of the USS BERKELEY, and no unusual
circumstances were reported.
About 6:45 AM the USS BERKELEY reminded the crew that their mission
should be concluded shortly and they should return to the USS HORNET.
Receipt of this information was acknowledged and it was reported that
they had a surface contact and would investigate before departing
the area.
Shortly thereafter the aircraft disappeared from the radar scope
of the USS BERKELEY. This was not considered significant or alarming
at that time as it was believed the aircraft had gone beneath the
radar to investigate its contact. It is thought that the natural
curvature of the earth caused the aircraft to go off radar approximately
five minutes before they were scheduled to return to the HORNET.
Their last known location according to coordinates was in the Gulf of
Tonkin about halfway between the coastal city of Thanh Hoa, North
Vietnam and the Chinese island of Hai Nan, although reports to some
of the families placed them much closer to the island - about 15 miles
away. Within a few hours of the disappearance, Radio Hanoi reported
that an aircraft had been shot down near Bach Long Vi Island, North
Vietnam. The Navy did not classify the men missing as Prisoners of War
because this report could not be confirmed as accurate. The last known
location of the aircraft was about 30 miles from this island.
At 7:15 AM the USS BERKELEY notified the USS MAHAN that the aircraft
should be inbound to USS MAHAN enroute to the USS HORNET. Upon receipt
of this information the USS MAHAN tried unsuccessfully to
contact the aircraft by radio and radar and subsequently reported the
situation to the USS HORNET. Shortly thereafter search and rescue efforts
were commenced and LCDR Forman and his crew were reported missing at sea.
A close friend of Templin's was part of the effort. According to him,
the weather was clear, and there was not a puff of wind. The Gulf was
so calm that there was not a ripple on the surface, so that objects
floating great distances away could be seen. The search parties found
no trace, no oil slick and no debris indicating where the plane went
down. According to Templin's friend, the search went on for the remaining
months he was on station. He says, "Our squadron was uniquely qualified...
we had the right kind of airplane and were working in the immediate
area and more importantly...we cared. We found nothing."
On February 1, 1966 the four-man life raft from the aircraft was
found off the coast of North Vietnam approximately 152 miles from
the last known position of the aircraft. The raft, which was identified
by its serial number, bore no evidence of having been used and did not
show any signs of damage by fire or gunfire. This particular raft is
designed to automatically inflate when immersed in salt water.
On March 14, 1966 a flight helmet was found by a friendly fishing
junk and turned over to U.S. authorities. This helmet was picked up
in the same general area as where the life raft was located and has
been identified as belonging to Bernard Templin.
When Templin`s friend left Yankee Station and was steaming away
to safer waters, he was walking down a passageway and one of the
Intelligence Officers from the Flag stopped him. They went to a
secure area and he told Templin's friend that some very high-level
intelligence had been forwarded to the ship identifying one or more
of the crew members from the aircraft as positively seen in North
Vietnam. Templin's friend naturally assumed that they were POWs.
None of the crew ever returned.
The four were maintained as missing until 1975, at which time a "finding
of death" was made on the crew based on no information to indicate
they were alive.
Tragically, information has poured from Southeast Asia since the end
of the war regarding American prisoners still alive in captivity.
The U.S. Government has received nearly 10,000 such reports, yet
seems unable to find the formula to secure the freedom of those
Americans.
MEMBER
of the
POD
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Many thanks to Lady Jen for this lovely award.
I also want to thank John P. Lorf, for this fine award.
And to Larry Brugh, thanks so much.
Link above to write to me, Bud.
