Tag: Pennsylvania

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Claycomb, Clarence James
Army Staff Sergeant

Clarence James Claycomb, age 27, from Altoona, Pennsylvania, Blair county.

Parents: John T. Claycomb and Ruth (Dessenberger) Claycomb.
Spouse: Vema (Weierick) Claycomb.
Children: Georgeann, 5, and James Jr., 3.

Service era: Vietnam
Schools: Altoona High, 1958.
Military history: Nine-year career soldier. An Army supply sergeant with 11th armored cavalry. Was in Vietnam since August 1967 and served 3 years in Germany and 1 year in Korea. Started tour Aug. 2, 1967. Posthumously awarded Brozne Star Medal. Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal and the Vietnam Campaign Ribbon.

Date of death: Saturday, January 13, 1968
Death details: Killed when a weapon accidentally discharged by another soldier in a supply room at Binh, Duong, South Vietnam.
Cemetery: Bellwood Memorial

Source: Altoona Mirror, National Archives, Department of Defense, Tyrone Daily Herald (1968)

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Kemmerer, Donald Richard
Air Force Major

Donald Richard Kemmerer from Quakertown, Pennsylvania, Bucks county.

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: August 6, 1967
Death details: On August 6, 1967, an F-4C Phantom II (tail number 64-0752) with two crew members took part in a two-aircraft combat mission over North Vietnam. While attacking an enemy target, this Phantom was hit by ground fire and reported a fire warning light. As the wingman aircraft aborted its pass on the target, the Phantom’s pilot called, “I have both fire warning lights; am punching out.” The crew of the other aircraft then observed the Phantom enter a vertical dive with fire coming from both tailpipes, and impact the water with no explosion. The wingman circled the crash site but no beeper signals were detected and no parachutes sighted, and further search efforts were unable to locate the aircraft or its crew.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

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Zook, Harold Jacob
Air Force Lieutenant Colonel

Harold Jacob Zook from New Holland, Pennsylvania, Lancaster county.

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: May 31, 1966
Death details: On October 22, 1986, the Central Identification Lab-Hawaii (CILHI, now DPAA) identified the remains of Lieutenant Colonel Harold Jacob Zook, missing from the Vietnam War.

Lieutenant Colonel Zook, who joined the U.S. Air Force from South Dakota, served with the 61st Troop Carrier Squadron. On May 31, 1966, Lt Col Zook served as the copilot on board a C-130 Hercules (tail number 64-0511). The Hercules departed from Da Nang Air Base, South Vietnam on a classified bombing mission using special weapons against the Thanh Hoa Bridge in North Vietnam. During the bombing run, the Hercules was shot down and Lt Col Zook was killed. Hostile presence in the area prevented immediate recovery efforts. In 1986, the Vietnamese government repatriated remains which were later identified as those of Lt Col Zook.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

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Orlandi, Anthony G.
Army Corporal

Anthony G. Orlandi from Pennsylvania, Somerset county.

Service era: Korea

Date of death: Saturday, January 12, 1952
Death details: On the morning of January 12, 1952, members of Company L, 3rd Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division participated in a combined infantry and tank patrol near Nanoni-Polmukkae, North Korea, in the present-day Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). The patrol targeted an enemy-occupied position, Hill 472. Upon reaching the hill, Company L was met with a wave of machine gun fire and hand grenades. Company L was making progress towards capturing the hill, until enemy forces began receiving support from heavy mortar fire. Shortly after this enemy support arrived, Company L was ordered to withdraw. Fourteen men were lost during this battle for Hill 472. Corporal Anthony George Orlandi, who joined the U.S. Army from South Carolina, served with Company L, 3rd Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. On January 12, 1952, CPL Orlandi was killed during the battle for Hill 472. Because his loss occurred in what is now the DMZ, his remains have yet to be recovered, and he is still unaccounted-for. Today, Corporal Orlandi is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency