SPRINGSTON, THEODORE JR.
Name: Theodore Springston Jr.
Branch/Rank: United States Air Force/O4
Unit:
Date of Birth: 23 November 1931
Home City of Record: SAN FRANCISCO CA
Date of Loss: 03 June 1967
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 174000 North 1062000 East
Status (in 1973): Missing in Action
Category: 4
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: B57B
Missions:
Other Personnel in Incident: JOSEPH KEARNS, remains returned 1988
Refno: 0721
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 and CACCF = Combined Action
Combat Casualty File. 2020
REMARKS:
CACCF/CRASH/PILOT/POSTHUMOUS PROMOTION
No further information available at this time.
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02/2020
https://dpaa.secure.force.com/dpaaProfile?id=a0Jt0000000KYevEAG
On June 3, 1967, a B-57 Canberra (tail number 53-3862, call sign "Tanner") with two crew members embarked on a solo armed road reconnaissance mission over enemy targets in Quang Binh Province, North Vietnam. The pilot made radio contact to request permission to enter North Vietnamese airspace, but never made contact again. The aircraft failed to return to base following the mission and was declared missing. There was no information available regarding the aircraft's possible location, preventing effective searches for a crash site, and further attempts to locate the aircraft or crew were unsuccessful.
Major Theodore Springston Jr., who joined the U.S. Air Force from California, served with the 13th Bomb Squadron. He was the pilot of the Canberra when it disappeared, and his remains have not been recovered. After the incident, the Air Force promoted Maj Springston to the rank of Colonel. Today, Colonel Springston 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 Active Pursuit.
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