Valley Stream New York

Herbert Hugh Dilger from Valley Stream, New York, Nassau county.

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: Thursday, October 2, 1969
Death details:  On October 2, 1969, a C-2A Greyhound (bureau number 152796) carrying five crew members and twenty passengers took off on a routine logistics support flight from Cubi Point Naval Station, Republic of the Philippines, to the USS Constellation (CVA 64) in the Gulf of Tonkin. En route, the aircraft was in radio and radar contact with the carrier when it suddenly disappeared from the radar. There were no distress calls or beepers heard. An extensive air and surface search was begun immediately and recovered some personal effects and aircraft debris, but no survivors. Eventually, a crash site was discovered off the coast of North Vietnam, however, no remains were recovered.

Lieutenant Herbert Hugh Dilger entered the U.S. Navy from New York and was a member of Fleet Tactical Support Squadron 50. He was the pilot of this Greyhound when it crashed, and he was lost with the aircraft. His remains were not recovered following the incident. Today, Lieutenant Dilger is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Based on all information available, DPAA assessed the individual’s case to be in the analytical category of Non-recoverable.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency