Robert Joseph Sr. Panek, age 30, from Chicago, Illinois, Cook county.
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: January 28, 1970
Death details: On May 4, 1989, the Central Identification Laboratory-Hawaii (CILH, now DPAA) identified the remains of Lieutenant Colonel Robert Joseph Panek Sr., missing from the Vietnam War.
Lieutenant Colonel Panek joined the U.S. Air Force from Illinois and was a member of the 354th Tactical Fighter Squadron. On January 28, 1970, he was the electronic warfare officer aboard an F-105G Thunderchief (tail number 63-8329) on a reconnaissance escort mission over enemy territory in Vietnam. The Thunderchief was damaged by ground fire during the mission, and Lt Col Panek was forced to eject. He was seen to successfully land on the ground, but search and rescue efforts were unable to locate him, and he died at some point following the incident. In December 1988, the Vietnamese government repatriated an unidentified set of remains to U.S. custody. In May 1989, U.S. analysts identified Lt Col Panek among the returned remains.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency