REX, ROBERT ALAN
Remains Returned

Name: Robert Alan Rex
Rank/Branch: O2/United States Air Force
Unit:
Date of Birth: 17 February 1942
Home City of Record: Randolph UT
Date of Loss: 08 December 1968
Country of Loss: Laos
Loss Coordinates:
Status (in 1973):
Category: 3
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: F105D
Missions:
Other Personnel in Incident:
Incident # 1336

Source: Compiled by P.O.W. NETWORK from one or more of the following: raw
data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA
families, published sources, interviews.

REMARKS:
                              
                  Defense POW/MIA Weekly Update

July 26, 1996

MIA SERVICEMAN RETURNS HOME

The remains of an American serviceman previously unaccounted-for from
Southeast Asia were returned from Hickam AFB, Hawaii to the USAF mortuary,
Travis AFB, Calif. on July 10, 1996.  The remains were identified as Captain
Robert A. Rex, USAF, of Randolph, Utah.

On December 8, 1968, Rex was the pilot of an F-105D Thunderchief in a
flight of four aircraft which departed Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base on a
strike mission over Laos.

The Forward Air Controller operating in the target area observed him roll in
on his target in a 60-degree dive.  There did not appear to be any attempt
by Rex to recover from the dive or to deliver his ordnance.  The FAC
reported that the canopy of the F-105D was still in place when the
aircraft crashed and exploded. Rescue aircraft in the area received no
beeper signals from the area of the crash site.  Hostile threats in the area
prevented any ground inspections of the crash site.

On two subsequent joint investigations in 1994, U. S. and Lao teams surveyed
and excavated the crash site where crew-related items and remains were
recovered.  The identification of the remains by the Central Identification
Laboratory, Hawaii, was made through standard forensic methods, and was
confirmed through the use of mitochondrial DNA testing.