Bannon, Paul Wedlake
Air Force Colonel

Paul Wedlake Bannon, age 34, from Hueytown, Alabama, Jefferson county.

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: Saturday, July 12, 1969

Death details: On July 12, 1969, an F-4D Phantom II (tail number 66-7697) with two crew members took off from Ubon Air Base, Thailand, for a visual reconnaissance mission over Laos. The aircraft completed its mission over the primary target area then contacted controllers at Nakhon Phanom Air Base, Thailand, and stated that they were proceeding to another location. However, the controller abruptly lost radio and radar contact with the aircraft during this exchange. At this time, the aircraft was in the vicinity of (GC) WE 229 974. When the aircraft failed to rendezvous for refueling, a communications search and a check of other air bases was initiated without success. Further search efforts were inhibited by bad weather.

Major Paul Wedlake Bannon, who entered the U.S. Air Force from Alabama, served with the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing and was the aircraft commander aboard this Phantom at the time of its disappearance. He remains unaccounted for. Subsequent to the incident, and while carried in the status of missing in action (MIA), the U.S. Air Force promoted Major Bannon to the rank of Colonel (Col). Today, Colonel Bannon is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency