MIA: Charles Harold W. Read, Jr. Name: Charles Harold W. Read, Jr. Rank/Branch: O4/US Air Force Unit: 497th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Udorn Date of Birth: 03 February 1929 Home City of Record: Miami FL Date of Loss: 24 August 1968 Country of Loss: North Vietnam Loss Coordinates: 174000N 1062400E (XE456547) Status (in 1973): Missing in Action Category: 2 Acft/Vehicle/Ground: F4D Other Personnel in Incident: Melvin E. Ladewig (missing) Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project 15 March 1991 from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews. Copyright 1991 Homecoming II Project. REMARKS: SYNOPSIS: The Phantom, used by Air Force, Marine and Navy air wings, served a multitude of functions including fighter-bomber and interceptor, photo and electronic surveillance. The two man aircraft was extremely fast (Mach 2), and had a long range (900 - 2300 miles, depending on stores and mission type). The F4 was also extremely maneuverable and handled well at low and high altitudes. Most pilots considered it one of the "hottest" planes around. Maj. Charles H.W. Read Jr. was the pilot and 1Lt. Melvin E. Ladewig the Weapons Systems Officer onboard an F4D from the 497th Tactical Fighter Squadron based at Udorn, Thailand. On August 24, 1968, they were the crew of the number 2 aircraft in a flight of two assigned an armed reconnaissance mission over North Vietnam. As the flight was over Quang Binh province about 10 miles southwest of the city of Quang Khe, a bombing run was made and afterwards, Read's aircraft was seen as a large fireball on the ground by the pilots of the lead aircraft. They reported no radio contact with either pilot prior to the crash, nor did they see parachutes or hear any emergency radio beeper signals to indicate Read and Ladewig ejected from the aircraft prior to its crashing. However, Ladewig and Read were not declared dead, so the possibility existed that they safely left the aircraft. Both were listed Missing in Action. Since the war ended, the Defense Department has received over 10,000 reports relating to the men still unaccounted for in Southeast Asia, yet concludes that no actionable evidence has been received that would indicate Americans are still alive in Southeast Asia. A recent Senate investigation indicates that most of these reports were dismissed without just cause, and that there is every indication that Americans remained in captivity far after the war ended, and may be alive today. It's time we learned the truth about our missing and brought them home. I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to keep pushing this issue inside the Beltway... The need to get specific answers is more important now than ever before. If still alive, some MIAs are now in their 70s...They don't have much time left. We have to demand the answers from the bureaucrats and keep standing on their necks (figuratively speaking) until they get the message that THEY work for US and that we are serious about getting these long overdue responses. Diplomatic considerations aside... We can no longer allow questionable protocols established by pseudo-aristocratic armchair strategists, to determine or influence the fate of the men who were in the trenches while the diplomats were sharing sherry and canapes and talking about "Their Plans" for the future of SE Asia. If you'd like to see what some others are doing in addition to writing their congressmen, senators and the Whitehouse, check out some of these sites: http://hawk.nji.com/~mred/mialist.htm Another remarkable site is by an 11 year old angel who never even set foot on American soil...She not only put up a page...she started a major project for an organization of Kids on the Net called KeyPals International. Her MIA page is at [http://www.geocities.com/~angelicdevil/mia.html] but don't miss her Bring Grandpa Home page at [http://www.worldkids.net/clubs/kci/projects/Bring.html]. If you come away from that site without a lump in your throat, then you just weren't paying attention. Take care, Gunny Thanks Gunny, I could never have said it so well! This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page