Gerald Everett Olson

The database page for Gerald Everett Olson

3 Jun 2001 I just wish for this man to be remembered. I know that someone must miss him. I wear his MIA bracelet. 07 Jun 2005 REMEMBERED by one who wears his MIA Bracelet. Cindy Stinson ostinson@tampabay.rr.com

Notes from The Virtual Wall "Puff the magic Dragon, A bird of days long gone, Came to fly the evening sky, In a land called Vietnam" The 4th ACS deployed with the first AC-47 gunships in Autumn 1965 and immediately began operations. Based at Nha Trang, flights of three aircraft and five or six crews were sent to DaNang, Pleiku, Bien Hoa, and Binh Thuy. One flight was retained at Nha Trang. The 4th ACS was part of the 14th Air Commando Wing (14th ACS, later renamed the 14th Special Operations Wing), popularly known as "The Antique Wing" since they flew only 'outmoded' propeller-driven aircraft - A-1Es, C/AC/EC-47s, U-10s, etc. The AC-47 gunships soon received the callsign "SPOOKY", but were commonly known as "Puff" - the tracer streams looked like a dragon's breath. On 13 March 1966, SPOOKY 73 was assigned a night armed recon mission over Quang Nam Province, South Vietnam. The crew consisted of CAPT Howard W. Henninger, pilot CAPT Robert E. Pasekoff, copilot CAPT Gerald E. Olson, navigator TSGT Edwin E. Morgan, loadmaster SSGT Gene E. Davis, flight mechanic SSGT Marshall I. Pauley, gunner SGT Dean A. Duvall, gunner The last radio contact with the aircraft was shortly after takeoff from Da Nang. Although the wreckage was never located, it is believed that the AC-47 went down just east of the Laotian border in Quang Nam Province. The seven crewmembers were declared Missing in Action. As of 11 Feb 2003, Gerald E. Olson's remains have not been repatriated (see our MIA Current Status pages). Additional information is available on the POWNetwork.org site and the Task Force Omega site.

Top of Page www.VirtualWall.org Back to To alpha index O FL State Index . Panel 06E 4TH ACS Index Contact Us

With all respect
Jim Schueckler, former CW2, US Army
Ken Davis, Commander, United States Navy (Ret)
Last updated 08/10/2009