MAJOR FRANCIS EDWARD VISCONTI 

Rank/Branch: O3/US Marine Corps
Unit: HMM 362, MAG 36
Date of Birth: 16 November 1934
Home City of Record: Syracuse NY
Date of Loss: 22 November 1965
Country of Loss: South Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 151605N 1085022E (BT720060)
Status (in 1973): Missing In Action
Category: 2
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: UH34D

Other Personnel In Incident: Thomas E. Douglas; Richard A. Miller; Victor J. Pirker (all missing)

Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project 15 October 1990 from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews.

SYNOPSIS: On November 22, 1965, Capt. Francis E. Visconti was the pilot of a UH34D helicopter flying with other aircraft on a combat mission in South Vietnam. Bad weather forced Visconti's aircraft out to sea about halfway between Chu Lai and Quang Ngai, and he was separated from the rest of the group.

Also onboard the aircraft were Capt. Richard A. Miller, Cpl. Thomas E. Douglas, and Cpl. Victor J. Pirker, all from the same unit. The helicopter went down and all four Marines were classified Missing in Action. The casualty is listed as battle related, which means the aircraft was probably hit by enemy fire. The U.S. believes that the Vietnamese could account for the four men.

There has been no word of any of the crew of that ill-fated chopper since that day. The Vietnamese have denied any knowledge of them.

Evidence mounts that Americans are still alive in Southeast Asia. There have been hundreds of eye-witnesses who have said they personally saw them. It is not known whether any of the crew of the UH34 helicopter survived and are among those said to be alive and still held prisoner, but someone's brother, son, husband, or father is alive. We owe them our very best effort to bring them home.

Richard A. Miller and Francis E. Visconti were promoted to the rank of Major, Thomas E. Douglas and Edward C. Upner to the rak of Staff Sergeant during the period they were maintained missing.