Select one of my POW-MIA Dedication Pages: [LtCol Bobby Neeld] [Capt Mitchell Lane] [Capt Randall Craddock] [Col Stuart Andrews] [SSgt Alfons Bankowski] [Norwich Connecticut Memorial] [Viet Nam Veterans Memorial Wall]
Name: Mitchell Sim Lane Rank/Branch: O3/US Air Force Unit: 188th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Tuy Hoa AB, South Vietnam Date of Birth: 04 October 1940 Home City of Record: Albuquerque NM Date of Loss: 04 January 1969 Country of Loss: South Vietnam Loss Coordinates: 120100N 1090200E (BP860291) Status (in 1973): Missing in Action Category: 4 Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: F100C Refno: 1355
Other Personnel in Incident: Bobby G. Neeld (missing from another F100)
Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project 01 April 1990 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. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK 1998.
Actual USG definition of Category assigned to each POW/MIA
REMARKS:
SYNOPSIS: The North American F100 Super Sabre, nicknamed "Hun," was a single seat jet fighter that first came into service during the Korean War. During the Gulf of Tonkin Crises, which catapulted the United States head long into the Vietnam War, the first Air Force F100 squadrons were sent to DaNang, South Vietnam in August 1964. Interestingly, during both wars, the Hun's most valuable uses were in close air support for ground troops, and as principle strike aircraft because it could deliver its ordnance on target at treetop level at full speed.
On 3 January 1969, then Major Bobby G. Neeld and 1st Lt. Mitchell S. Lane departed Tuy Hoa Airfield, South Vietnam, on a 2-aircraft flight that was forced to divert to Phan Rang Airfield, Khanh Hoa Province, South Vietnam due to adverse weather conditions. Phan Rang Airfield was approximately 100 miles southwest of Tuy Hoa Airfield. The next day, 4 January 1969, Maj. Bobby Neeld was the pilot of the lead aircraft, call sign "Taco 81;" and 1st Lt. Mitchell Lane was the pilot of the #2 aircraft, call sign "Taco 82;" that comprised a 2-aircraft flight on a Troop Assault Preparation mission against enemy positions near a landing zone (LZ).
Taco flight departed Phan Rang Airfield at 0717 hours on the briefed mission and was to return to their base afterward. However, after completing the strike mission, Taco flight was again diverted to Phan Rang Airfield by Tuy Hoa Operational Control due to deteriorating weather conditions. At the time Taco flight changed flight paths, Maj. Neeld had a fuel load of 5400 lbs. and 1st Lt. Lane had 5000 lbs. The fuel requirement for the flight from Tuy Hoa to Phan Rang was 1750 lbs.
As Maj. Neeld and 1st Lt. Lane prepared to depart Tuy Hoa airspace, they requested an in route descent to VFR condition which was disallowed by port call (the flight control center) as their separation from IFR traffic could not be guaranteed. At 0825 hours, Taco flight was given a vector of 160 degrees and radar monitoring was discontinued by the control center.
Radio contact was established with Bobby Neeld and Mitchell Lane when they were over rugged jungle covered mountains approximately 73 miles southwest of Tuy Hoa, 11 miles west-northwest of Cam Ranh Bay Airbase and 11 miles west of the coastline. Weather conditions included winds from 330 degrees at 2 knots, visibility of more than 6 miles. Broken stratus clouds had bases from 200 feet with tops at 3000 feet. There was also a solid cloud overcast layer with its base at 9000 feet along with occasional light rain from the north and with lower visibility in that direction. At the time of their last contact, there was no indication of trouble with either aircraft.
By 1045 hours Taco flight had not landed at Phan Rang Airfield and all other airfields in South Vietnam and Thailand were contacted in the hope they had diverted to one of them instead. Over the next 3 days as weather conditions improved, extensive visual and electronic search and rescue (SAR) efforts were initiated over land and water adjacent to their last known location. These efforts were terminated the evening of 6 January 1969 because of forecasted poor weather conditions in the search area. At the time the formal SAR effort was terminated, both Bobby Neeld and Mitchell Lane were listed Missing in Action.
Since the end of the Vietnam War well over 21,000 reports of American prisoners, missing and otherwise unaccounted for have been received by our government. Many of these reports document LIVE America Prisoners of War remaining captive throughout Southeast Asia TODAY.
Pilots and aircrews in Vietnam and Laos were called upon to fly in many dangerous circumstances, and they were prepared to be wounded, killed or captured. It probably never occurred to them that they could be abandoned by the country they so proudly served.
When the last American troops left Southeast Asia in 1975, some 2500 Americans were unaccounted for. Reports received by the U.S. Government since that time build a strong case for belief that hundreds of these "unaccounted for" Americans are still alive and in captivity.
"Unaccounted for" is a term that should apply to numbers, not men. We do not know if Lane and Neeld are alive or dead, but it seems certain that some are alive. As long as even one American remains captive, we as a nation owe these men our best effort to find them and bring them home. Until the fates of men like Lane and Neeld are known, their families will wonder if they are dead or alive - and why they were deserted.
"Electronic Rubbing" courtesy of The VVMF--The Virtual Wall
This site is owned by Barry Axelrod, Maj, USAF, Ret
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Updated March 19, 2005