C123B Provider 3 February 1966

Brown, Wilbur Ronald
Air Force Major

Wilbur Ronald Brown, age 29, from New Hanover County Wilmington, North Carolina .

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: Thursday, February 3, 1966
Death details: On January 23, 2009, the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC, now DPAA) identified the remains of Major Wilbur Ronald Brown, missing from the Vietnam War. Major Brown entered the U.S. Air Force from North Carolina and served with the 310th Air Commando Squadron. On February 3, 1966, he piloted a C-123B Provider (tail number 55-4537) on a mission along the border of Laos and South Vietnam. While over Quang Tri Province, radio contact was lost with the aircraft and it crashed for unknown reasons, killing Maj Brown. Aerial searches did not locate the crash site, and Maj Brown’s remains were not recovered at the time. From 2000 to 2003, joint U.S./Vietnamese investigative teams traveled to the crash site and recovered human remains and aircraft wreckage correlating to this loss; in 2009, U.S. investigators were able to identify Maj Brown from those remains. Major Brown is memorialized in 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.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

Carter, James Louis
Air Force Colonel

James Louis Carter, age 37, from Los Angeles County Pasadena, California .

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: Thursday, February 3, 1966
Death details: On June 7, 2004, the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC, now DPAA) identified the remains of Colonel James Louis Carter, missing from the Vietnam War. Colonel Carter entered the U.S. Air Force from California and served with the 310th Air Commando Squadron. On February 3, 1966, he was the aircraft commander aboard a C-123B Provider (tail number 55-4537) on a mission along the border of Laos and South Vietnam. While over Quang Tri Province, radio contact was lost with the aircraft and it crashed for unknown reasons, killing Col Carter. Aerial searches did not locate the crash site, and Col Carter’s remains were not recovered at the time. From 2000 to 2003, joint U.S./Vietnamese investigative teams traveled to the crash site and recovered human remains and aircraft wreckage correlating to this loss; in 2004, U.S. investigators were able to identify Col Carter from those remains. Colonel Carter is memorialized in 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.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

Parsley, Edward Milton
Air Force cmsergeant

Edward Milton Parsley, age 33, from Mingo County Naugatuck, West Virginia .

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: Thursday, February 3, 1966
Death details: On June 7, 2004, the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC, now DPAA) identified the remains of Chief Master Sergeant Edward Milton Parsley, missing from the Vietnam War. Chief Master Sergeant Milton entered the U.S. Air Force from West Virginia and served with the 310th Air Commando Squadron. On February 3, 1966, he was the loadmaster aboard a C-123B Provider (tail number 55-4537) on a mission along the border of Laos and South Vietnam. While over Quang Tri Province, radio contact was lost with the aircraft and it crashed for unknown reasons, killing CMSgt Parsley. Aerial searches did not locate the crash site, and CMSgt Parsley’s remains were not recovered at the time. From 2000 to 2003, joint U.S./Vietnamese investigative teams traveled to the crash site and recovered human remains and aircraft wreckage correlating to this loss; in 2004, U.S. investigators were able to identify CMSgt Parsley from those remains. Chief Master Sergeant Parsley is memorialized in 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.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

Waller, Therman Morris
Air Force Chief master sergeant

Therman Morris Waller, age 22, from Cross County Wynne, Arkansas .

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: Thursday, February 3, 1966
Death details: On June 7, 2004, the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC, now DPAA) identified the remains of Chief Master Sergeant Therman Morris Waller, missing from the Vietnam War. Chief Master Sergeant Waller entered the U.S. Air Force from Arkansas and served with the 310th Air Commando Squadron. On February 3, 1966, he was the flight mechanic aboard a C-123B Provider (tail number 55-4537) on a mission along the border of Laos and South Vietnam. While over Quang Tri Province, radio contact was lost with the aircraft and it crashed for unknown reasons, killing CMSgt Morris. Aerial searches did not locate the crash site, and CMSgt Waller’s remains were not recovered at the time. From 2000 to 2003, joint U.S./Vietnamese investigative teams traveled to the crash site and recovered human remains and aircraft wreckage correlating to this loss; in 2004, U.S. investigators were able to identify CMSgt Waller from those remains. Chief Master Sergeant Waller is memorialized in 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.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

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