CANUP, FRANKLIN HARLEE JR.

Name: Franklin Harlee Canup, Jr.
Rank/Branch: E5/US Navy
Unit: Mine Squadron 11 Detachment ALFA, MSB-14
Date of Birth: 02 June 1928
Home City of Record: Concord NC
Date of Loss: 14 January 1967
Country of Loss: South Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 102633N 1065735E (YS145549)
Status (in 1973): Killed/Body Not Recovered
Category: 4
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: MSB 14
Refno: 0565

Other Personnel in Incident: (crew - see text)

Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project with the assistance of one or more
of the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources,
correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews: 01
January 1990. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK 2020.


REMARKS:

SYNOPSIS: Petty Officer Franklin H. Canup Jr. was one of four crew members
assigned to Mine Squadron 11, Detachment ALFA. On January 14, 1967, Canup
and his crew departed onboard their vessel, MSB-14 to tour areas in southern
Gia Dinh Province in the Delta region of South Vietnam.

That same day, during the early morning hours, MSB-14 was rammed and
immediately sunk by a merchant ship, the MUI FINN, at the mouth of the Long
Tau River. A search commenced within minutes after the collision for
survivors, however, Canup and the crew were not found. The minesweeper was
lifted for salvage on January 19 and it was learned that no personnel were
trapped inside. Canup and the crew were initially placed in a casualty
status of Missing in Action, and later changed to Reported Dead on January
25, 1967.

U.S. Navy narratives of the loss of Franklin H. Canup do not list the names
of the crew of MSB-14, but it is assumed that their bodies were later
located, as none of them are currently missing. From the collision of MSB-14
and the MUI FINN, only Canup remains unaccounted for.

Canup was listed as killed, body not recovered. He is among nearly 2500
Americans who remain unaccounted for from the Vietnam war. The cases of
some, like Canup, seem clear - that they perished and will never be
recovered. Unfortunately, mounting evidence indicates that hundreds of
Americans are still captive, waiting for the country they proudly served to
secure their freedom.

In our haste to leave an unpopular war, it now appears we abandoned some of
our best men. In our haste to heal the wounds of this same war, will we sign
their death warrants? Or will we do what we can to bring them home?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

01/2020

EM2 FRANKLIN HARLEE CANUP JR.

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On January 14, 1967, a U.S. Navy minesweeper, MSB 14, operating in the vicinity of Can Gio, South Vietnam, in heavy fog collided with a vessel of French registry, the Mui Finn, at the mouth of the Saigon River approximately four miles off shore. The collision caused the minesweeper to split in half and sink immediately. Three sailors who were standing near the point of impact were knocked into the water and drowned, and the bodies of two were recovered. Extensive searches failed to locate the body of the third sailor. 

Electrician's Mate Second Class Franklin Harlee Canup Jr., who joined the U.S. Navy from North Carolina, served with Mine Squadron 11, Detachment A. He was one of three sailors killed when MSB 14 collided with another vessel and sank. His body was not recovered. Today, Electrician's Mate Second Class Canup is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. 

Based on all information available, DPAA assessed the individual's case to be in the analytical category of Non-recoverable.

If you are a family member of this serviceman, DPAA can provide you with additional information and analysis of your case. Please contact your casualty office representative.

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