More than 50 years after he disappeared during the Vietnam War, the remains of a Marine Corps captain have been discovered and identified by authorities.
Authorities recovered the remains of U.S. Marine Corps Capt. Ronald W. Forrester in Odessa, Texas, in December of last year and just confirmed his identity, according to a news release from the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA). The 25-year-old pilot disappeared while flying over the jungles of northern Vietnam in 1972 and has been missing ever since.
“During the winter of 1972, Forrester was assigned to Marine All-Weather Attack Squadron 533, Marine Strike Group 12, 1st Marine Air Wing. On December 27, Forrester was piloting an A-6A Intruder with his co-pilot. The agency reported, “Democratic “During a nighttime combat mission in the northern part of the Republic of (North) Vietnam,” he said, “after entering the target area, Forrester's aircraft lost radio communications and never returned to base. “Search and rescue teams found no trace of the aircraft or crew in Le Thuy District, Quang Binh Province.”
Because Captain Forrester was never found, in September 1978 the Marine Corps changed his status from Missing in Action to Killed in Action. But late last year, investigators found remains and other evidence they believe is linked to the two missing soldiers.
“This recovered evidence was linked to incident Reference Number (REFNO) 1973 and associated crash site (VN-02653),” officials said. “To date, REFNO 1973 is the only A-6 loss within 30 kilometers of the crash site, and the DPAA Indo-Pacific Directorate believes this has a direct connection to the missing sailors.”
Accordingly GMAHis hometown newspaper published a story about his disappearance in 1974 and his parents' desire to see their son return home. Now Forrester will be taken to his final resting place and buried at Arlington National Cemetery on October 7.