|
|
 |
 |
|
Remains Returned 8 March 1989; ID'd 8 Feb. 1990 - Questionable.
Please read the additonal information on the next page
as to why the ID of his remains are questionable.
| Name: | Gary Russell La Bohn |
| Rank/Branch: | E4/US Army Special Forces |
| Unit: | Command & Control North, MACV-SOG, 5th Special Forces |
| Date of Birth (DOB): | 28 December 1942 (Madison, WI) |
| Home City of Record: | Wixom, MI |
| Loss Date: | 30 November 1968 |
| Country of Loss: | Laos |
| Loss Coordinates: | 163852N 1062514E (XD515410) |
| Status (in 1973): | Missing In Action |
| Category: | 4 |
| Acft/Vehicle/Ground: | CH34 |
| Refno: | |
| Other Personnel in Incident: | Michael H. Mein; Klaus D. Scholz; Raymond Stacks; Samuel K. Toomey; Arthur E. Bader (all missing); Richard A. Fitts (remains returned) |
| Source: | Compiled by Homecoming II Project 01 April 1990 with the assistance of from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK 1998. |
| Remarks: | |
| Synopsis: | |
| SFC Gary LaBohn was born in Madison, Wisconsin on December 28, 1942. He joined the Army in Detroit in December 1966. In Vietnam, Gary was part of Military Assistance Command Vietnam Studies and Observation Group (MACV-SOG) which was a joint service high command unconventional warfare task force engaged in highly classified operations throughout Southeast Asia. The 5th Special Forces channeled personnel into MACV-SOG (though it was not a Special Forces group) through Special Operations Augmentation (SOA) which provided their "cover" while under secret orders to MACV-SOG. These teams performed deep penetration missions of strategic reconnaissance and interdiction missions in Laos and Cambodia which were called, depending on the country and time frame, "Shining Brass" or "Prairie Fire" missions.
On November 30, 1968, Sgt. Richard A. Fitts, Sgt. Arthur E. Bader, Cpl. Gary R. LaBohn, SSgt. Klaus D. Scholz, Maj. Samuel K. Toomey, Cpl. Michael H. Mein, 1Lt. Raymond C. Stacks were passengers aboard a Vietnamese Air Force CH34 helicopter (serial #14-4653) as their team was being transported to their reconnaissance mission area in Laos. Details of their mission was classified at that time, and remains classified in early 1990. However, information received from some of the family members indicates that the mission was related to disarming an enemy munitions store. This same account includes the informaton that Maj. Toomey was a chemical warfare expert. Other information states that he was a communications officer. Toomey's family identified his job as one that he could not talk about, but that he was an "Advisor to the Special Forces." The helicopter was flying at 4,000 feet when it was struck by 37mm anti-aircraft fire, went into a spin, crashed in a mass of flames and exploded. The helicopter crashed about 10 miles northwest of Khe Sanh, just into Laos east of Tchepone. The crash site is in heavy jungle, near a stream. From the time the aircraft was hit until the time it impacted out of view, the helicopter was under observation and no one was seen to leave the aircraft during its descent. No ground search was initiated because the location was in a denied area. Later visual search indicated that the pilot's hatch was open, and his helmet was seen 25-30 feet from the helicopter, but no survivors or bodies were seen. All the personnel aboard the aircraft, however, were not declared dead, but were were declared Missing in Action, which was procedure when no proof of death existed. (Following note copied from the POWNET biography for Raymond Clark Stacks and inserted here for further explanation and clarification.) (NOTE: The reports concerning this CH34 seem to be in conflict. Either the aircraft burned, or the hatch was seen to be open the next day during visual search, but probably not both. The body of CH34 helicopters contain substantial amounts of magnesium, which is very flammable, and if they catch fire, they tend to burn completely. Witnesses say the helicopter crashed in a mass of flames. If the aircraft did burn, then it is not likely that the helicopter would even be recognizable by the time visual search was conducted. The fact that these men were not declared Killed in Action/Body Not Recovered, but instead, Missing in Action seems to support the fact that the aircraft did NOT burn, and the possibility exists that the crew and passengers escaped the crippled aircraft. This could logically lead to speculation that the crew and passengers might have been captured.) When the war ended, and 591 Americans were releaesed from prison camps in Southeast Asia, not one man who had been held in Laos was released. Although the Pathet Lao stated publicly that they held "tens of tens" of Americans, no negotiations occurred which would free them at that time, nor have any occurred since. In March 1988, the area in which the helicopter crashed was excavated by a joint Lao/US technical team. Human remains consisting of 17 teeth and 145 bone fragments, none measuring over two inches, were recovered. The remains were returned to the U.S. Army Central Identification (CIL) in Hawaii. On January 3, 1990, it was announced that the remains of Richard Fitts had been positively identified from the material recovered at the crash site. That identification was determined by the government's conclusion that two of the 17 teeth belonged to Fitts. Fitts' parents, after having an independent analysis conducted on the teeth, felt assured that the teeth belonged to their son, and subsequently buried them in Boston, Massachusetts. The remaining 15 teeth and 145 bone fragments were said to be unidentifiable. Barely a month later, on February 8, 1990, the Department of Defense announced that the remainder of the crew had been positively identified and would be buried, along with the Vietnamese crew, in a mass grave in Arlington National Cemetery. Fitts' name was included on that tombstone along with the other Americans because the Pentagon believed some of the bone fragments belonged to Fitts. Thus, even though the remains were scientifically unidentifiable, the cases were closed on these individuals. Critics of the U.S. Government's identification of the entire crew of the helicopter point to a similar incident some years ago. In 1968, unidentifiable remains attributed to a group of U.S. Marines killed near Khe Sanh on February 25, 1968 were buried in a mass grave in St. Louis. One of the deceased was identified as being Marine Sgt. Ronald Ridgeway. Five years later, Ridgeway was released from a Vietnamese prisoner of war camp, giving rise to considerable speculation as to the validity of the positive identification of the other remains buried in St. Louis. There are still over 2300 Americans who remain prisoner, missing, or otherwise unaccounted for in Southeast Asia. Nearly 600 of them were lost in Laos. The U.S. Government, by early 1990, had received nearly 10,000 reports relating to Americans missing in Southeast Aisa. Many authorities believe there are hundreds of Americans still alive today, held captive. In recent years, the numbers of remains returned from Vietnam and excavated in Laos has increased dramatically. Government strategists happily point to this as "progress" on the POW/MIA issue, although most of these remains are still unidentified. Indeed, many families, having had independent studies of the remains to assure accurate identification, now have answers to long-awaited concerns about their loved ones. However, when remains are positively identified, the U.S. Government closes the books and the search for that missing man ends. Can we afford to close the books on an American who may be alive waiting for his country to bring him home? How many will serve in the next war knowing they may be abandoned? |
|
All Biographical and loss information on POWs provided by OpJC have been supplied by Chuck and Mary Schantag of POWNET. Please check with POWNET regularly for updates. |
|
Additional Information From POWNET |
|
 |
| GARY RUSSELL LA BOHN
SFC - E7 - Army - Regular Special Forces 36 year old Single, Caucasian, Male Date of Birth - Dec 28, 1942 From - WIXOM, MICHIGAN Length of service 12 years. His tour of duty began on Sep 23, 1968 Casualty was on Mar 20, 1979 in LAOS Hostile, died while missing HELICOPTER - NONCREW AIR LOSS, CRASH ON LAND Body was recovered Religion - PROTESTANT Panel 37W - - Line 13 |
Source: The VietNam Veterans' Memorial Wall Page. |
Next POW/MIA biography |
|
 |
 |
 |
|
|
| Home | Back | E-mail me | Library | My TOC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
||||
| Sign My POW/MIA Guestbook
Read My POW/MIA Guestbook |
||||
Click here to adopt your own POW/MIA from Operation Just Cause (OpJC or OJC). Click here to go to the OpJC Comm Center for more information. All Biographical and loss information on POWs provided by OpJC have been supplied by Chuck and Mary Schantag of POWNET. Please check with POWNET regularly for updates. |
Anyone without Internet access may adopt a POW/MIA
by sending a SASE along with their state and branch preference to:
Operation Just Cause
P.O. Box 264
Stockholm, NJ 07460
I will participate in POW/MIA Internet Blackout Day on February 1, 2000.......What about you?
Please click on the banner above to learn more about POW/MIA Internet Blackout Day.
| Home | Back | Top | Library | My TOC |
Other graphics through the courtesy of OJC and POW/MIA Freedom Fighters.
Other graphics copyright and courtesy of Ron's Free Patriotic Web Graphics
and Doc's Military and Patriotic Graphics.
MIA/POW Flag Email Stamp Icon graphic courtesy of The American War Library.
Animated guestbook courtesy of Mike Shaikun's Animated Gif Collection.
Web page space courtesy of 50megs.com.
Guestbook courtesy of TheGuestBook.com