MILLER, WYATT JR.

Name: Wyatt Miller, Jr.
Rank/Branch: E2/US Army
Unit: 490th GF Company, USA SUP COM ONG (Da Nang)
Date of Birth: 09 July 1950 (Tomes GA)
Home City of Record: Philadelphia PA
Date of Loss: 13 September 1970
Country of Loss: South Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 144814N 1081337E (BT065765)
Status (in 1973): Killed/Body Not Recovered
Category: 4
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: Surfboard
Refno: 1661

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 in 2020.

Other Personnel in Incident: (none missing)

REMARKS:

SYNOPSIS: On September 13, 1970, Pvt. Wyatt Miller, Jr. was surfing in the
South China Sea off the coast about 8 miles south of Da Nang, Quang Nam
Province, South Vietnam. At about 1750 hours, it was reported that Miller
had fallen off his surfboard and could not be found.

Immediate search efforts were begun, assisted by two helicopters, but were
unsuccessful. All search efforts were suspended on September 14, without
having found a trace of Pvt. Miller.

Miller's is one of the unfortunate accidental deaths that occur wherever
people are. The fact that he died an accidental death in the midst of war is
tragically ironic. He is listed among the missing with honor, because his
body was never found to be returned to the country he served.

Others who are missing do not have such clear cut cases. Some were known
captives; some were photographed as they were led by their guards. Some were
in radio contact with search teams, while others simply disappeared.

Since the war ended, over 250,000 interviews have been conducted with those
who claim to know about Americans still alive in Southeast Asia, and several
million documents have been studied. U.S. Government experts cannot seem to
agree whether Americans are there alive or not. Distracters say it would be
far too politically difficult to bring the men they believe to be alive
home, and the U.S. is content to negotiate for remains.

Over 1000 eye-witness reports of living American prisoners were received by
1989.  Most of them are still classified. If, as the U.S. seems to believe,
the men are all dead, why the secrecy after so many years? If the men are
alive, why are they not home?

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02/2020

https://dpaa.secure.force.com/dpaaProfile?id=a0Jt0000000KZylEAG

PV2 WYATT MILLER JR.

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PV2 Wyatt Miller Jr. entered the U.S. Army from Pennsylvania and was a member of 490th General Services Company, Support Command. On September 13, 1970, he was surfing in the South China Sea off the coast of South Vietnam when he fell off his surfboard and drowned. Searchers were unable to locate his body and further attempts to recover his remains were unsuccessful. After the incident, the Army promoted PV2 Miller to Specialist 4.  Today, Specialist 4 Miller 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.

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