ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 158711
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| Date: | Thursday 30 December 1971 |
| Time: | night |
| Type: |  Grumman A-6A Intruder |
| Owner/operator: | VA-165, US Navy |
| Registration: | 155677 |
| MSN: | I-403 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | near Hon Nieu Island off Vinh, Nghe An Province, North Vietnam -
 Vietnam
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | USS Constellation (CVA-64) off Vietnam coast |
| USS Constellation (CVA-64) off Vietnam coast | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
A‑6A Intruder BuNo. 155677/'NG-506' of VA‑165, US Navy, as part of CVW-9 aboard the USS Constellatiomn (CVA-64)**.
Lost on combat operations December 30, 1971: hit by SA-2 SAM and aircraft broke up over Gulf of Tonkin, near Hon Nieu island, off Vinh, Nghe An Province, North Vietnam, at approximate Coordinates: 18'45.00"N 105'50,00"E.
Of the two crew, both ejected (Two good chutes observed). The Bombardier/Navigator Lt Burton was survived with injuries and was picked up just off-shore by a SAR helicopter, but the pilot, then-Lt Commander F. L. Holmes, could not be located and was classed as Missing in Action.
None of the POWs who returned two months later had any knowledge of Lt Commander Holmes and he was continued in MIA status until April 12, 1975 when the Secretary of the Navy approved a Presumptive Finding of Death. Holmes was promoted to Commander while in MIA status. His remains have not been repatriated.
(**Between September 1971 and August 1973, the VA-165 as part of CVW-9 completed two combat deployments aboard the USS CONSTELLATION (CVA-64). They flew 2,600 combat and combat support missions during this period, delivering a half-million pounds of bombs and transferring nearly 13 million pounds of jet fuel.)
NOTE: Some published sources erraneously give the date of this incident as December 13, 1971 not the night of December 30-31, 1971
Sources:
1. A-6 Intruder Units of the Vietnam War By Rick Morgan
2. http://web.archive.org/web/20180422222159/http://www.millionmonkeytheater.com/A-6.html
3. http://www.joebaugher.com/navy_serials/thirdseries19.html
4. http://web.archive.org/web/20171103001143/http://www.ejection-history.org.uk:80/aircraft_by_type/a6_prowler.htm
5. http://www.flickriver.com/photos/skyhawkpc/8700558180/
6. http://www.intruderassociation.org/squadrons/va165.html
7. http://www.hullnumber.com/VA-165
8. http://www.virtualwall.org/dh/HolmesFL01a.htm
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 20-Aug-2013 09:01 | Uli Elch | Added |
| 20-Aug-2013 09:54 | Uli Elch | Updated [Date, Registration, Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Location, Narrative] |
| 24-Mar-2016 12:45 | Dr.John Smith | Updated [Date, Time, Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 16-Aug-2018 17:04 | Anon. | Updated [Narrative] |
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