Name: Russell Clemensen Goodman
Rank/Branch: O4/US Air Force
Unit: Liaison, USAF/USN, USS ENTERPRISE
Date of Birth: 19 July 1934
Home City of Record: Salt Lake City UT
Date of Loss: 20 February 1967
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 194158N 1054257E (WG750782)
Status (in 1973): Killed/Body Not Recovered
Category: 2
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: F4B
Other Personnel in Incident:
Gary L. Thornton (released POW)
Source:
Compiled by Homecoming II Project 01 April 1990 with the assistance of
one or more of the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources,
correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews.
REMARKS:
POSS DIED IN CRASH
SYNOPSIS:
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.
Major Russell C. Goodman was an Air Force pilot flying as a liaison officer between the Air Force and the Navy. On 20 February 1967, he was the pilot of an F4B Phantom fighter jet with Ensign Gary L. Thornton flying as his weapons/systems officer. The team was scheduled to fly a bombing mission against a railroad siding in North Vietnam.
At a point about 8 miles south of the city Thanh Hoa in Thanh Hoa Province, North Vietnam, Goodman's aircraft was hit by a surface-to-air missile (SAM) in the left front section. Ensign Thornton could not establish contact with Maj. Goodman. Before he ejected from the badly damaged jet, Thornton noted that Goodman was either dead or unconscious because his head was down and wobbling back and forth.
Ensign Thornton was captured by the North Vietnamese and returned to U.S. control on March 4, 1973 during Operation Homecoming. During his debriefing, Thornton expressed his belief that Maj. Goodman did not exit the aircraft.
Since American involvement in Vietnam ended in 1975, nearly 10,000 reports relating to Americans missing, prisoner, or otherwise unaccounted for in Indochina have been received by the U.S. Government. Many officials, having examined this largely classified information, have reluctantly concluded that many Americans are still alive today, held captive by our long-ago enemy.
Maj. Russell C. Goodman probably died the day his Phantom took a SAM hit. But one can imagine that he would gladly be among those first in line to help bring his comrades home. It's time the war ended. It's time our men came home.
