RICHARDSON, DALE WAYNE

Remains ID announced 08/21/2015

Name: Dale Wayne Richardson
Rank/Branch: O3/US Army
Unit: HHC, 2nd Battalion, 34th Armor, 25th Infantry Division
Date of Birth: 05 May 1941 (Twin Creek AR)
Home City of Record: Cashton WI
Date of Loss: 02 May 1970
Country of Loss: Cambodia
Loss Coordinates: 114512N 1060827E (XU243013)
Status (in 1973): Missing In Action
Category: 2
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: UH1H

Other Personnel In Incident: Michael Varnado; Robert M. Young; Bunyan D. Price;
Rodney L. Griffin (all missing);  Frederick H. Crowson; Daniel F. Maslowski
(returned POWs); - Tommy Karreci (evaded and escaped)

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. Date Compiled: 01
January 1990. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK 2022.

REMARKS: HELO FOUND, NO TRACE OF SUBJ

SYNOPSIS: On May 2, 1970 a UH1H helicopter from Company B, 229th Aviation
Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division flown by WO1 Michael B. Varnado was hit by
ground fire and forced to land just over the border of South Vietnam near
the city of Memot, Cambodia. The aircraft was transporting members of HHC,
34th Armor, 25th Infantry Division, SP4 Rodney L. Griffin; SP4 Bunyan D.
Price, Jr.; WO1 Daniel F. Maslowski; Capt. Dale W. Richardson; and Capt.
Robert M. Young. Also aboard were Tommy Karreci, SP4 Frederick H. Crowson,
and CW2 Daniel F. Maslowski, crew members of the aircraft.

The men were part of an attempt to stop North Vietnamese forces from gaining
strongholds in Cambodia. President Nixon announced the request by Cambodia
for American assistance on April 30. Had we not assisted, the North
Vietnamese, in addition to having an effective sanctuary to which they could
retreat without retaliation, would also have South Vietnam completely
outflanked.

The crew all survived the crash, and had only 30-40 seconds on the ground to
decide what to do. They all attempted to evade, each in different
directions. Only 18-year-old Karreci managed to make it back to U.S. lines
in 2 or 3 days. Crowson, Maslowski, Varnado and Young went in one direction
and were all captured by North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces. Price,
according to Defense Department records, was also captured. Griffin and
Richardson took off in another direction and were never seen again.

Crowson and Maslowski were released in 1973 and in their debriefings stated
that WO1 Varnado and Capt. Young had died in captivity, while detained in
Cambodia. The Provisional Revolutionary Government of South Vietnam (PRG)
officially acknowledged their deaths, listing Varnado's death as 21
September 1970, and Young's death as 17 November 1972.

According to Dan Maslowski, Bob Young died of illness in Dan's arms in the
fall of 1972. Maslowski saw Varnado about two months after capture. "Vito"
had been shot in the leg and in the side when he was captured, and according
to Dan, "looked like hell". His side wound had healed, but the wound in his
leg, in the kneecap, was badly infected. He could not walk, and told
Maslowski that the Viet Cong had been transporting him in a hammock. The
Viet Cong had told Varnado that he was to be taken to a hospital to have his
leg taken care of. The Vietnamese state that he died two months after Dan
saw him in camp (about 4 months after capture).

On August 1, 1989, it was announced that the Vietnamese had "discovered" the
remains of Michael Varnado, returned them to the U.S. His remains were
positively identified, much to the relief of family and surviving comrades,
and Michael Varnado could finally be buried with the honor he deserved. The
remains identification did not contradict that Vietnamese' statement that
Varnado died four months after capture.

The fate of Price is uncertain. Maslowski always believed Price had been
captured, but never saw him in camps he was held in. One report from escaped
ARVN POWs stated that he was captured by the Khmer and because the ethnic
groups normally did not cooperate, the Khmer would not likely have given
Price over to the Vietnamese, who had captured the other four.
                                                       

Since 1973, nearly 10,000 reports have been given to the U.S. Government
regarding Americans still missing in Southeast Asia. Some, according to U.S.
State Department sources, have withstood the "closest scrutiny" possible,
and cannot be disputed. There is very strong reason to believe that
Americans are still held captive in Southeast Asia today, yet President
after President has failed to would bring them home.

===================================================

March 9, 2000

I have obtained copies of the battalion daily journal for my unit 1/5 (Mech)
Infantry, 25th InfDiv. My copies cover the period 27 Feb through 31 May,
1970. Our unit was the group that found the wreckage of this helicopter in
Cambodia on May 17th.

Doug Huffman
http://www.users.uswest.net/~huffpapa/vietnam.html
<huffpapa@uswest.net>

Network note ---  The journals relate:

Daily Staff Journal or Duty Officer's Log

1st Bn 5th Inf (Mech)
25th Inf Div
Location: WT261033
From Hour: 0001
Date: 17 May 70
To: 2400
Date: May 17 70

Item
68 cont: Chopper & will send 2 fc to ck out

69 1450: BB: UT 237001 Believed saw sniper in a tree, fired & saw something
fell/Will ck out. // Also have 2 pc's stick and 1 piece threw track

70 1452  Ref 69 - Neg findings

71 1453  Dustoff 160 complete Dest Med T.N.

72 1520  A1/5 at chopper

73 1521  B1/5 Moving to S again Fm 237007

74 1550  A1/5 spot report at downed chopper: 24009. Tail number 16542, found
         neg - bodies, neg bones  Believed was shot down by 51 cal - 51 cal
         hole in blade - both front seat belts were unfastened and armour
         plates

74 cont  pushed back - found numeruos FT prints (NVA type) around area - 2
         rm attempts had been made to conceal the aircraft - Also found 2
         sets of burned fatigues but was able to distinquish laundry mark
         (XA/12/c) // Tail section was abt 50' fm aircraft intact  10' fm
         tail section was an American Express banking statement w/name, rank
         & serial number awaiting rtn of A1/5 for ID.

NETWORK NOTE:
Item 89 1940
American Express ID -- HARTKE, James L PFC HHC 2/34 Armor
Account number (shown in record)

All records indicate Hartke returned alive from Vietnam.

 
IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. NR-336-15
August 21, 2015
Soldier Missing From Vietnam War Accounted For

 
The Department of Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that the remains of a serviceman, missing from the Vietnam War, have been identified and will be buried with full military honors.

 Army Maj. Dale W. Richardson of Mount Sterling, Illinois, will be buried Aug. 29, in Mountain View, Ark. Richardson was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 34th Armor Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, and was the passenger aboard an UH-1H Iroquois (Huey) helicopter that was en route to Fire Support Base Katum, South Vietnam, when it was diverted due to bad weather. After flying into Cambodian airspace, the aircraft came under heavy enemy ground fire, causing the pilot to make an emergency landing in Kampong Cham Province, Cambodia. The Huey’s four crewmen and its four passengers survived the landing. One crewman was able to evade being captured by enemy forces and later returned to friendly lines. The other three crewmen and one passenger were captured. Two of the captured crewmen were released by the Vietnamese in 1973, and the remains of the other two captured men were returned to U.S. control in the 1980s and identified. Richardson died at the site of the crash during a fire fight with enemy forces. His remains were not recovered after the fire fight. 

From 1992 through 2008, joint U.S. / Kingdom of Cambodia (K.O.C.) teams investigated the site without success. On Feb. 18, 2009, a joint team interviewed witnesses in the Memot District of Cambodia who claimed to have information on the loss. The witnesses identified a possible burial site for the unaccounted for servicemen. The team excavated the burial site but was unsuccessful locating the remains.

From Jan. 16, 2010 to March 11, 2011, joint U.S. / K.O.C. teams excavated the area, but were unsuccessful recovering the crewman’s remains.

In February 2012, another joint U.S. / K.O.C. team re-interviewed two of the witnesses. The witnesses identified a secondary burial site near the previously excavated site. The team excavated the secondary burial site and recovered human remains and military gear from a single grave.

In the identification of Richardson, scientists from DPAA and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory (AFDIL) analyzed circumstantial evidence and used forensic identification tools, to include mitochondrial DNA, which matched his sister. 


Today there are 1,627 American service members that are still unaccounted for from the Vietnam War.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil or call 703-699-1420.
 
 
Subject: Finding family of a deceased soldier
Date: Thu, 17 Feb 2022 21:42:34 -0500
From: Charlene Tripler <kachetcharlene@gmail.com>

 
Hello. 
My name is Charlene Tripler. 
In the late 70s I was in high school and wore a Memorial bracelet with the name, Capt. Dale Richardson-5-2-70 on it. He was a POW. 
I found his name on the "remains returned" 2015 list. I was sorry he did not survive. 
I am wondering if there is a way for you to find out if there are surviving family members that might like to have the bracelet,  so that I can send it to them? 

Thank you. 
Charlene Tripler

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

02/2020

https://dpaa.secure.force.com/dpaaProfile?id=a0Jt000000oCQuuEAG

MAJ DALE WAYNE RICHARDSON

Return to Service Member Profiles

On August 21, 2015, the Department of Defense announced it identified the remains of Major Dale W. Richardson, missing from the Vietnam War.

Major Richardson, who joined the U.S. Army from Wisconsin, served with Company D, 2nd Battalion, 34th Armored Regiment, 25th Infantry Division. On May 2, 1970, he was a passenger aboard a UH-1H Iroquois (serial number unknown) that carried eight in total and flying to Fire Support Base Katum, South Vietnam. At some point, the helicopter was diverted due to bad weather. It flew into Cambodian air space where it was hit by enemy ground fire. The pilot made an emergency landing in Kampong Cham Province, Cambodia. The four crew members and four passengers survived the crash landing, but three, including MA Richardson, died in a firefight with enemy soldiers that occurred after the landing. One U.S. soldier escaped, but the rest were taken as prisoners of war. The bodies of the three men killed in the firefight were not recovered until February 2012, when a Joint U.S./Cambodian team located the crash site and recovered human remains, and forensic analysis identified MAJ Richardson among the remains recovered from the site.

Major Richardson is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

If you are a family member of this serviceman, you may contact your casualty office representative to learn more about your service member.