Gierak, George Gregory Jr.
Navy Lieutenant junior grade
George Gregory Jr. Gierak from Springfield, New York, Otsego county.
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Tuesday, June 14, 1966
Death details:
On June 14, 1966, an RA-3B Skywarrior (bureau number 144842) with three crew members took off from the USS Hancock (CV 19) on a night photo reconnaissance mission over Ha Tinh Province, North Vietnam, along with an escort aircraft. The escort plane’s pilot reported seeing a bright flash following the Skywarrior’s photo run over the target but did not see the Skywarrior again nor could he establish radio contact with the Skywarrior. Search and rescue aircraft were launched over the missing Skywarrior’s flight path but were unsuccessful in locating the aircraft or its three crew members.
Lieutenant Junior Grade George Gregory Gierak Jr., who joined the U.S. Navy from New York, was a member of Heavy Photographic Squadron 61. He was the copilot of the Skywarrior when it went missing, and was lost with the aircraft. His remains have not been recovered. Today, Lieutenant Junior Grade Gierak is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency