Austin, Charles David
Air Force Major

Charles David Austin, age 25, from New Canaan, Connecticut.

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: April 24, 1967
Death details: On April 24, 1967, an F-4C Phantom II (tail number 63-7641, call sign “Arrow 1”) took off from Ubon Airfield, Thailand, with a crew of two on a strike mission against a bridge near Hanoi, North Vietnam. An electrical transformer station north of Hanoi was also attacked. During its last pass at the target, this Phantom was hit by anti-aircraft fire, broke apart, and crashed. Two large pieces of flaming wreckage were seen to strike the ground in a fireball. No parachutes were seen and no rescue beeper signals were received. The aircraft’s two crew members remain missing.

First Lieutenant Charles David Austin entered the U.S. Air Force from Connecticut and was a member of the 433rd Tactical Fighter Squadron. He was the pilot of this Phantom when it crashed, and was lost with the aircraft. His remains were not recovered. Following the incident, the Air Force promoted 1st Lt Austin to the rank of Major (Maj). Today, Major Austin is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency