This diorama commemorates the last
flight of both Lt. Col John Armstrong and Capt. Lance P. Sijan.
On the night of 09 Nov 1967, then
Lt. Col. Armstrong, commander of the 480th Tactical Fighter Squadron based at Da
Nang, South Vietnam, and Weapons System Officer Capt Lance P. Sijan were tasked
with a bombing mission in the Ho Chi Minh Trail area of Laos. The target was Ban
Loboy Ford, and a second F-4C was along as wingman.
Shortly before 9 PM, Armstrong
rolled in on the target and released his ordnance. Almost immediately, the
aircraft was engulfed in a ball of fire and entered a banking climb to about
10,000 feet before rolling to a near vertical plunge into the jungle below.
Neither the Forward Air Controller nor Armstrong's wingman saw parachutes, but
initiated SAR (Search Air-Rescue) at once. It has been proposed that the
possible cause of the explosion was, other than ground AAA, faulty fuses on the
750 lb. bombs. They had a tendency to detonate early in some instances.
Click on
images below to see larger images
The SAR forces established
contact with Sijan, who was badly hurt during his ejection and landing, but were
unable to pick him up. SAR efforts continued the next day, but were called off
when no further radio contact could be established with Sijan. No contact was
made at any time with LtCol John Armstrong. Both men were placed in MIA status.
Although wounded and without
food, water, or even his survival kit, Sijan managed to evade the Pathet Lao and
North Vietnamese forces for 46 days before being captured on Christmas Day 1967.
By that time, he was emaciated and in extremely poor shape. Never the less, he
managed to cold-cock his guard and escape, but was recaptured within hours. He
was transported to a holding compound in Vinh,
North Vietnam, where he was put into the care of other American POWs. After further travel to
Hanoi, Sijan's body failed him and he died of wounds and exhaustion on 22 January
1968. His mental determination and physical stamina so impressed his fellow POWs
that, upon their return, Sijan was nominated for and received the Medal of
Honor.
Then-1stLt Sijan was shot down on
09 Nov 1967; he was captured on 25 Dec 1967 and transported to
Hanoi
where he died in captivity on 22 January 1968. His remains were repatriated on
13 Mar 1974 and positively identified on 22 Apr 1974. He is buried in
Arlington Park
Cemetery, Milwaukee,
Wisconsin. Captain Sijan was the first graduate of the Air
Force
Academy to win the Congressional Medal of Honor.
The
20mm gun pod was scratch-built using sheet styrene and scrap from old
kits. The ground power unit (GPU) was also scratch built.
Tom
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