Watson, Frank Peter
Air Force Captain

Frank Peter Watson, age 27, from Oklahoma County Oklahoma City, Oklahoma .

Spouse: Geraldine M. Watson

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: Friday, June 18, 1965
Death details: On June 18, 1965, two B-52F Stratofortresses (tail numbers 57-179 and 57-047) carrying six crew members each collided in mid-air over the South China Sea while en route to Vietnam. Both aircraft were destroyed in the collision. Search and rescue efforts recovered four survivors and the remains of one additional crew member. The remaining seven crew members could not be found. Captain Frank Peter Watson, who entered the U.S. Air Force from Oklahoma, served with the 441st Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) and was a navigator aboard one of these B-52s. He was lost with his aircraft and remains unaccounted for. Today, Captain Watson is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. His name is also inscribed along with all his fallen comrades on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, DC. Based on all information available, DPAA assessed the individual’s case to be in the analytical category of Non-recoverable.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Associated Press (1965)