| The Incident
On 20 December 1968, Capt.
Robert D. Kent, pilot; and 1st Lt. Richard G. Morin,
bombardier/navigator; comprised the crew of an F4B that departed
their base on a night bombing mission to interdict enemy movement
through the jungle covered mountains approximately 11 miles
southwest of Muang Xepon, 7 miles northeast of Muang Phin and 25
miles west of the Lao/South Vietnamese border, Savannakhet
Province, Laos.
This area of Laos was
considered a major artery of the infamous Ho Chi Minh Trail. When
North Vietnam began to increase its military strength in South
Vietnam, NVA and Viet Cong troops again intruded on neutral Laos
for sanctuary, as the Viet Minh had done during the war with the
French some years before. This border road was used by the
Communists to transport weapons, supplies and troops from North
Vietnam into South Vietnam, and was frequently no more than a
path cut through the jungle covered mountains. US forces used all
assets available to them to stop this flow of men and supplies
from moving south into the war zone.
At 0340 hours, while conducting
its bombing mission, the F4B disappeared without a trace. Search
and rescue (SAR) efforts were initiated at first light, but heard
no emergency radio beepers, saw no parachutes and found no trace
of the aircraft or its crew. Both Bob Kent and Richard Morin were
listed Missing in Action.
After the war ended, family
members of the crew of the missing F4B fighter/bomber who
questioned the Marine Corps about the fate of their missing loved
ones were told that "the aircraft probably exploded in mid-air
and there would be nothing to find."
There was no additional
information about the fate of Bob Kent and Richard Morin until 24
July 1992 when Capt. Kent's cousin reviewed his casualty file
during an annual meeting of family members in Washington, DC.
When she opened the cover of his records, she found Bob Kent's
military ID card, his Geneva Convention card and his drivers
license inside a 3"x4" manila photo envelope. Each one of these
pieces of personal identification, which were carried by Bob Kent
in his flight suit during that last mission, was in perfect,
undamaged condition. When asked, "When were these documents
returned?" "By whom and under what circumstances?" "How, when and
by whom were they placed in his records?" and "Why was the family
not notified when they were returned?" The Marine Corps had no
answers. To date they still have no answers.
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