MORRISON, JOSEPH CASTLEMAN
Name: Joseph Castleman Morrison
Rank/Branch: O4/US Air Force
Unit:
Date of Birth: 13 November 1930
Home City of Record: Lexington KY
Date of Loss: 25 November 1968
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 172000N 1061200E (XE270185)
Status (in 1973): Prisoner of War
Category: 2
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: F4D
Other Personnel In Incident: San D. Francisco (missing)
Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project (919/527-8079) 01 April 1991 from one
or more of the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources,
correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews. Copyright
1991 Homecoming II Project.
REMARKS: VOICE CONTACT ON GROUND
SYNOPSIS: 1Lt. San D. Francisco and Maj. Joseph C. Morrison were flying an F4D
aircraft on a combat mission in North Vietnam when it was shot down November 25,
1968. Both officers safely ejected from the plane and established radio contact
on the ground with recovery forces. Their parachutes were spotted with 700
meters of a North Vietnamese encampment.
Contact with Francisco was lost within a half hour. Morrison evaded successfully
throughout the night, and re-established radio contact on the following day.
Recovery was prevented, primarily by weather, and voice and beeper contact was
lost. Both Morrison and Francisco were placed in Prisoner of War Status and
expected to be released in 1973 when 591 Americans were freed from North
Vietnamese prisons. However, neither man was released.
A later coordination of records showed that Francisco and Morrison were both
listed as Missing (not Prisoner) by Defense Intelligence Agency and the Air
Force, while JCRC (Thailand) carried both Francisco and Morrison as Prisoner
(not missing). JCRC was ordered to "delete any references pertaining to PW
status" in Francisco's case. No order was issued at that time to change
Morrison's status. The reasons behind the order are unclear.
Over a thousand reports of Americans alive in the hands of the Vietnamese have
been received by the U.S. since the end of the war. Many government officials
state that they believe Americans are currently being held against their will in
Southeast Asia. The question is, who are they, and how will we bring them home?
Are Morrison and Francisco among them?
San D. Francisco was promoted to the rank of Major and Joseph C. Morrison to the
rank of Colonel during the period they were maintained Prisoner of War.
(HOME)
Email: WebMaster
Angelfire - Easiest Free Home Pages
