Nimrod 33 29 December 1967

Cruz, Carlos
Air Force Major

Carlos Cruz, age 27, from Puerto Rico.

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: Friday, December 29, 1967
Death details: On October 18, 1995, Joint Task Force–Full Accounting (JTF-FA, now DPAA) identified the remains of Major Carlos Rafael Cruz, missing from the Vietnam War. Major Cruz entered the U.S. Air Force from Puerto Rico and served with the 606th Air Commando Squadron. On December 29, 1967, he piloted an A-26A Invader (tail number 64-17641, call sign “Nimrod 33”) that departed Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Airfield, Thailand, on an armed reconnaissance mission that targeted enemy supply lines in Savannakhet Province, Laos. While making a bombing run at the target, the aircraft was hit by enemy anti-aircraft fire and crashed, killing Maj Cruz. An aerial search was performed but his remains were not recovered at the time. In 1992, a joint U.S./Laotian investigative team traveled to the crash site, where they recovered human remains and artifacts associated with this aircraft’s loss, and in 1995, U.S. investigators were able to identify Maj Cruz from these remains.

Source: Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

Potter, William Joseph Jr.
Air Force Lieutenant Colonel

William Joseph Jr. Potter from Ambridge, Pennsylvania, Beaver county.

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: Friday, December 29, 1967
Death details: On October 18, 1995, Joint Task Force–Full Accounting (JTF-FA, now DPAA) identified the remains of Lieutenant Colonel William Joseph Potter Jr., missing from the Vietnam War. Lieutenant Colonel Potter entered the U.S. Air Force from Pennsylvania and served with the 606th Air Commando Squadron. On December 29, 1967, he was the navigator aboard an A-26A Invader (tail number 64-17641, call sign “Nimrod 33”) that departed Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Airfield, Thailand, on an armed reconnaissance mission that targeted enemy supply lines in Savannakhet Province, Laos. While making a bombing run at the target, the aircraft was hit by enemy anti-aircraft fire and crashed, killing Lt Col Potter. An aerial search was performed but his remains were not recovered at the time. In 1992, a joint U.S./Laotian investigative team traveled to the crash site, where they recovered human remains and artifacts associated with this loss, and in 1995, U.S. investigators were able to identify Lt Col Potter from these remains.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

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