Capt. Robert E. Hoskinson
| On July 29, 1966, an RC47D aircraft departed Udorn Airfield in Thailand en route to Sam Neua, Laos. The crew aboard the aircraft included Capt. Robert E. Hoskinson, pilot; Maj. Galileo F. Bossio, 1Lt. Vincent A. Chiarello, Capt. Bernard Conklin, 1Lt. Robert J. Di Tommaso, SSgt. James S. Hall, TSgt. John M. Mamiya and TSgt. Herbert E. Smith, crewmen. The aircraft was an unarmed RC47D Command and Control airship(Dogpatch 2).
When the aircraft was 10-20 miles south of Sam Neua, it was attacked by enemy fighters. Radio contact was lost and the families were initially told there was no further word of the plane or crew-that they had all been lost on an operational mission in North Vietnam. It was later learned, however, that at least one, possibly two parachutes were observed in the air from persons on the ground, and the loss had occurred NOT in North Vietnam but at 201200N 1040700E, which is in LAOS.
Primary objective of the C-47 in Laos at that point in the war was visual reconnaissance. American forces worked closely with CAS (CIA) primarily to weaken the communist supply link to South Vietnam via the "Ho Chi Minh Trail". This particular plane, however, was working in support of the CIA's indigenous army which was attmpting to prevent a communist take over in Laos.
The crewmembers on these missions were normally highly trained in electronic surveillance techniques as well as versed in codes and languages. Accordingly, and as "there was no war in Laos" certain details of the mission, such as the precise location of loss, were originally distorted. Later reports indicate that some of the crew survived the attack on July 29, 1966. According to a March 1974 list published by the National League of Families of POW/MIA's Bossio survived the incident and was missing in Laos. One 1971 report states that as many as 5 of the crew were captured. Chiarello and Di Tommaso were identified as survivors by Capt. Adair of project Dogpatch. US Air Force records still reflect the lass as having occurred in North Vietnam.
In 1988 the ramains of Conklin, Chiarello, Hall, Mamiya and Smith were returned to US control. They were positively identified and returned to their families for burial. The Di Tommaso family was also notified, and Mafalda Di Tommaso rushed to Hawaii to sadly welcome her son home. She was shocked to learn that no body had returned-only information which added nothing to the mystery surrounding her son's loss.
The families of Bossio, Hoskinson, and Di Tommaso have the right to know what happened on July 29, 1966. The communist governments of Southeast Asia can account for the large majority of the nearly 2,500 Americans still missing there. The weight of the evidence shows that some of them are still being held captive. It's time the veil of secrecy was lifted on these men and the others. It's time they came home. |
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