Darel Dean LeetunLieutenant Colonel13TH TFS, 388TH TFW, 7TH AF United States Air Force 24 December 1932 - 12 March 1975 Hettinger, North Dakota Panel 10E Line 107 |
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The database page for Darel Dean Leetun
Welcome home, Sir.From a fellow serviceman.E-mail address is not available. |
A Note from The Virtual WallOn 17 Sep 1966 then-Captain Leetun was flying F-105D tail number 62-4280 on a strike against rail and road bridges near Kep, North Vietnam. According to Hobson's "Vietnam Air Losses" Leetun's aircraft was hit as the flight approached the Cao Nung road bridge 17 miles northeast of Kep and immediately crashed. According to the Citation for the Air Force Cross awarded to Captain Leetun, his aircraft was hit before bomb release but he continued to attack the target and crashed afterwards.Hobson gives Captain Leetun's unit as the 469th Tactical Fighter Squadron, but the USAF casualty list and the Air Force Cross Citation both state he was assigned to the 13th TFS. Both the 469th and 13th TFS were part of the 388th Tactical Fighter Wing at Korat RTAFB, Thailand. In either case, Leetun was not seen to eject before impact and no contact was made with him after the crash. He was classed as Missing in Action and was carried in that status, gaining promotion twice, until the Secretary of the Air Force approved a Presumptive Finding of Death on 12 March 1975. The DoD Personnel Missing Southeast Asia (PMSEA) database now reflects that his remains were repatriated on 12 April 1995 with identification announced on 17 March 2005 - home again 38 years after his last flight.
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With all respect
Jim Schueckler, former CW2, US Army
Ken Davis, Commander, United States Navy (Ret)
Last updated 08/10/2009