Data Sources - Air Force Manual No. 200-25A, Department of the Air Force, Washington, October 16, 1961 page 1. Sanitized copy. National Archives KOREAN Conflict Casualty File (KCCF) 1950-1954.
03/92 -- Korea, and the men yet to be accounted for -- the "official list" -- is a list of U.S. servicemen known to have been
held as prisoners of war by the red Chinese and North Koreans from the Korean War
but not released or accounted for by the communists, as released on May 27,
1957 at a hearing of the House Subcommittee on the Far East and Pacific by the Department
of Defense.
The lists, the printed minutes of the May 27, 1957 hearing and the
"sense of congress" resolution were subsequently buried in the
archives. The original list had 450 names compiled from American POWS who were
repatriated by the Reds, as well as from photographs released by the Reds, Chinese
radio propaganda broadcasts, and letters written home by captured men. The "revised" list was narrowed down in august of 1961 to 389 men, and
all were arbitrarily declared dead by the military services, the USG still
lists them as "unaccounted for".
Names and ranks only were released at the time, and printed in "The
Spotlight" on August 27, 1979, along with the above information and background.
Further information has been compiled by the P.O.W. Network from the Hawaii POW/MIA
Korean Memorial records, National Archives documentation, and public United
States Air Force documentation, and changes made to the original published
information. (FEBRUARY 1992)
Phillip Wayne Tilch is listed on the "HONOR ROLL OF FORGOTTEN AMERICANS" yet is listed as having "died while missing" by the National Archive.
03/13/2021
- KOREAN WAR
- UNITED STATES AIR FORCE
- Unaccounted For
Sergeant Philip Wayne Tilch entered the U.S. Air Force from the District of Columbia and was a member of the 6132nd Tactical Control and Warning Squadron. On November 26, 1950, Sgt Tilch was attached to the 7th Republic of Korea Division, operating in a forward area of North Korea, when his unit encountered advancing enemy forces and had to pull back. While waiting to evacuate by air from Mosquito Airstrip, Sgt Tilch and other personnel were forced to withdraw on foot due to the rapidly approaching enemy forces. It was during this withdrawal that he went missing in action. He was reportedly captured by enemy forces and died at some point while in enemy custody. He remains unaccounted-for. Today, Sergeant Tilch 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 Deferred.
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.