| Date: 27 May 1972 |
| Aircraft type: A-4F Skyhawk |
| Serial Number: 155048 |
| Military Unit: VA-55 |
| Service: USN |
| Home Base: USS Hancock |
| Name(s): |
| Lt Thomas B Latendresse (POW) |
| A strike on a bridge near Ha Tinh was aborted due to bad weather at the target so the strike force went looking for targets of opportunity. Lt Latendresse flying Garfish 512 was part of the Iron Hand section tasked with flak suppression on the raid. As Lt Latendresse was pulling up from his attack on a flak site his aircraft was hit in the port wing by AAA. He ejected about 14 miles south of Vinh and was captured having suffered severe injuries during the ejection. Lt Latendresse was released on 28 March 1973 and spent the next 11 months being treated for his injuries. He had served on two combat cruises with VAW-13 flying the EA-1F version of the Skyraider and had been released from the Navy in 1969 to fly for Northwest Airlines. However, in June 1970 he returned to active duty and converted to the A-4 and flew a tour in the Gulf of Tonkin with VA-55. He eventually retired from the Navy as a Captain. |
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