DONAHUE, MORGAN JEFFERSON
Name: Morgan Jefferson Donahue
Rank/Branch: O2/US Air Force
Unit: 606th Special Operations Squadron, Nakhon Phanom, Thailand
Date of Birth: 02 May 1944
Home City of Record: Alexandria VA (family in FL & CT)
Date of Loss: 13 December 1968
Country of Loss: Laos
Loss Coordinates: 170100N 1055900E (XD055824)
Status (In 1973): Missing In Action
Category: 2
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: C123K
Other Personnel in Incident: On C123K: Douglas Dailey; John Albright; Joseph
Fanning; Samuel Walker; Fred L. Clarke (all missing); On B57B: Thomas W. Dugan;
Francis J. McGouldrick (all missing)
REMARKS: MID AIR COL-1 PARA OBS
Source: Compiled 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 2003.
SYNOPSIS: On December 13, 1968, the crew of a C123K was dispatched from Nakhon
Phanom Airfield located in northern Thailand near the border of Laos on an
operational mission over Laos. The C123 was assigned night patrol missions
along the Ho Chi Minh trail. Flying low at 2000-3000 feet, the job of the
seven man crew was to spot enemy truck convoys on the trail and to light up
the trails for accompanying B57 bombers which were flying overhead.
The crew on this particular mission included the pilot (name unknown); 1Lt.
Joseph P. Fanning, co-pilot; 1Lt. John S. Albright, navigator; 1Lt. Morgan J.
Donahue, navigator; SSgt. Samuel F. Walker, SSgt. Douglas V. Dailey, TSgt. Fred
L. Clarke, crewmembers. At 0330 hours, as the aircraft was flying about 30 miles
southwest of the Ban Karai Pass in Laos, the crew of the C123 were jolted by a
blow on the top of their plane in the after section. An overhead B57 that had
been called in for an air strike had collided with the control plane. The C123
lost power and went out of control. The pilot, stunned by a blow to the head,
lost consciousness.
The plane did not fall straight to the ground, but drifted lazily to the
ground in a flat spin which lasted several minutes. When the pilot regained
consciousness, he noted that the co-pilot (Fanning) and navigator (Donahue)
were gone. Donahue's station was in the underbelly of the plane where, lying
on his stomach, he directed an infared detection device through an open
hatch. The pilot parachuted out, landed in a treetop where he remained until
rescued at dawn. On the way down, he saw another chute below him, but,
because of the dark, was unable to determine who the crew member was.
Intelligence reports after the incident indicate that Donahue, at least, safely
reached the ground near Tchepone, but suffered a broken leg. A refugee who
escaped captivity in Laos in 1974 reported having observed an American prisoner
broughy to the caves near Tchepone, where he was held, in the period between
1968 and 1970. This American was later moved to another locatation unknown to
the refugee.
Several reports referring to "Moe-gan" and others describing Donahue as the
American called the "animal doctor" were received over the years since war's
end. In June and August, 1987, the Donahue family was given intelligence
reports tracking Morgan's movements from a POW camp in Kham Kuet, Khammouane
Province, Laos in the spring of 1987 to another camp in the Boualapha District
of the same province in August 1987. These reports were mere WEEKS old, yet the
U.S. marked them "routine". One of them gave Morgan's aircraft type and serial
number, which turned out to be, instead of the serial number of the aircraft,
Morgan's father's ZIP CODE. Morgan's family believes this is clearly a signal
to them from Morgan.
The crew of the C123K are among nearly 600 Americans who disappeared in Laos.
Many of these men were alive on the ground. The Lao admitted holding American
prisoners but these men were never negotiated for. Where are they? Are they
alive? Imagine the torture the Donahue family endures knowing Morgan is alive,
yet helpless to do anything to help him. What are we doing to help bring them
home?
John S. Albright II and Morgan J. Donahue graduated in 1967 from the United
States Air Force Academy
------------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 2002 07:42:44 -0400
From: "Lynn O'Shea" <lynnpowmia@prodigy.net>
Subject: Very Sad News
We've Lost A True Friend
The National Alliance of Families mourns the passing of Col. Vincent J.
"Budd" Donahue, father of POW/MIA Morgan J. Donahue, on July 10th. Col.
Donahue or "Budd" as he told everyone to call him was a stalwart in the
effort to bring our live POWs home and learn the truth about the missing.
From the day Morgan went down, he never relented. He pursued every lead,
making numerous trips to Southeast Asia. He fought both the Lao and U.S.
governments, in his efforts to bring his son home. Neither government could
stop his relentless efforts. In the end, it was illness that robbed him of
his ability to continue the fight.
A memorial service will be held at the Chapel of Love at Florida Memorial
Gardens, 5950 South U.S. Highway 1, Rockledge, Florida 32935, on Saturday
July 13th, at 11:00. All are welcome.
Those wishing to send cards or notes of condolences can send them to Mrs.
Donahue at 7 Willow Green Drive, Cocoa Beach, FL, 32931.
Personal Note from Lynn O'Shea - One of the first families members I got to
know, when I started in this issue, were Budd and Shirley Donahue. Budd
Donahue was a man on a mission. He was a fountain of knowledge on the
POW/MIA issue and its players. He truly left no stone unturned in his
effort to bring home a live POW.
Whenever I was in Florida visiting my relatives, the Donahue's would invite
me to their home, for lunch or dinner. They would talk about their sons,
one missing the other doing everything he could to find his brother. We'd
laugh and sometimes we'd cry. I'm going to remember the laughter....
Budd Donahue was the true definition of an officer and a gentleman. He
served his country well, in and out of uniform, and he deserved better from
it.
To his wife Shirley and son Jeff, we offer our most sincere condolences.
======================
Florida Today
VINCENT DONAHUE
COCOA BEACH -- Vincent J. "Budd'' Donahue, 84, of Cocoa Beach passed
away on Wednesday, July10, 2002. A long time resident of Florida, he
was a 30 year veteran of the United States Air Force. Following his
retirement from the U. S. A. F., he spent 20 years as Director of
Security for the Air Force Eastern Missile Test Range at Cape Kennedy
Air Force Station and Patrick AFB. Born in New York City in 1918, Col.
Donahue became an Army Air Corps Aviator in 1940 and went on to
accumulate over 30,000 hours ofaccident -free flying. It was during his
first aviation assignment in Tampa, that he met his wife, Shirley
Morgan. His assignments thereafter included California, Texas, Ohio,
the South Pacific,Alabama, Germany and Washington, D.C. For two years
after World War II, he was a pilot for Eastern Airlines, based in
Miami. Col. Donahue earned a B.A. and an M.A. from Stanford University
and an M.A. from the University of California. During his career, he
wasactive in the Lions Club, theRotary Club and the Brevard Vietnam
Veterans Association. He is survived by his wife, Shirley, and his
sons, Maj. Morgan Donahue, missing-inaction in Laos since December 13,
1968, and Dr. JeffreyDonahue of Cannes, France. A memorial service will
be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, July 13th, in the Chapel of Peace, in
Florida Memorial Gardens in Rockledge. Florida Memorial Funeral Home is
entrusted witharrangements.