Name: Herbert Owen Brennan
Rank/Branch: 06/US Air Force
Unit:
Date of Birth: 27 August 1926
Home City of Record: O'Neill NE
Date of Loss: 26 November 1967
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 172200N 1062000E (XE293215)
Status (in 1973): Missing in Action
Category: 2
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: F4C
Other Personnel in Incident:
Douglas C. Condit (missing)
REMARKS:
SYNOPSIS:
1Lt. Douglas C. Condit and Col. Herbert O. Brennan probably thought
they were fortunate to have been selected to fly the F4 Phantom fighter jet.
The Phantom, used by Air Force, Marine and Navy air wings, served a multitude
of functions including fighter-bomber and interceptor, photo and electronic
surveillance. The two man aircraft was extremely fast (Mach 2), and had a long
range (900 - 2300 miles, depending on stores and mission type). The F4 was also
extremely maneuverable and handled well at low and high altitudes. The F4 was
selected for a number of state-of-the-art electronics conversions, which
improved radar intercept and computer bombing capabilities enormously. Most
pilots considered it one of the "hottest" planes around.
Brennan, a full colonel had not been required to serve in Vietnam. The 1947 West Point graduate had a distinguished Air Force career, and served as an instructor at the United States Air Force Academy before volunteering for Vietnam Service.
On November 26, 1967, Condit was serving as pilot and Brennan as bombardier/navigator on board an F4C assigned a mission over North Vietnam. As the aircraft was over Quang Binh Province, about 12 miles from the Ban Karai pass, the aircraft was shot down.
The Ban Karai Pass was one of several passageways through the mountainous border of Vietnam and Laos. American aircraft flying from Thailand to missions over North Vietnam flew through them regularly, and many aircraft were lost. On the Laos side of the border coursed the "Ho Chi Minh Trail", a road heavily travelled by North Vietnamese troops moving materiel and personnel to their destinations through the relative safety of neutral Laos. The return ratio of men lost in and around the passes is far lower than that of those men lost in more populous areas, even though both were shot down by the same enemy and the same weapons. This is partly due to the extremely rugged terrain and resulting difficulty in recovery.
It seems improbable that in one of the most heavily traveled sections of the Ho Chi Minh Trail, the many Americans lost went unnoticed by the other side. The governments of Laos and Vietnam claim no knowledge of the fates of Condit or Brennan.
The U.S. Air Force placed both men in the category of Missing in Action. The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) further refined that category according to enemy knowledge, concluding that there is ample reason to believe that the enemy knows the fates of Brennan and Condit.
Since 1975, nearly 10,000 reports relating to Americans still missing in Southeast Asia, convincing many authorities that hundreds of Americans are still held in captivity. Condit and Brennan could be among them. It's time we brought our men home.
