SMITH, JOSEPH STANLEY
Remains Identified - June 2017 - see below.
Name: Joseph Stanley Smith
Branch/Rank: United States Air Force/O1
Unit:
Date of Birth: 07 May 1945
Home City of Record: ASSUMPTION IL
Date of Loss: 04 April 1971
Country of Loss: Cambodia
Loss Coordinates: 123257 North 1051757 East
Status (in 1973): Killed In Action/Body Not Recovered
Category: 2
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: F100D #563120
Missions:
Other Personnel in Incident:
Refno: 1738
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.
==================================
Library of Congress files:
Cambodia: IIR EVALUATION 6024034193; 6024040693; 6024044893
Country: Cambodia
Name: JOSEPH S. SMITH
Subjects: KAMPONG THUM PROVINCE; Aircraft downed; Killed
Reel: 201
Page: 42
Type of Document: Message
Date of Report: 93 04 08
Date of Information: 71 04 04
Document Number: 081500ZAPR93
Originator: DIA
Category: Casualty files
Cambodia: LETTER TO NEXT OF KIN: ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Country: Cambodia
Name: JOSEPH S. SMITH
Subjects: KAMPONG THUM PROVINCE; Aircraft downed; Crash site; Grave site;
Remains
Reel: 201
Page: 33-34
Type of Document: Letter
Date of Report: 91 12 26
Date of Information: 71 04 04
Originator: USAF
Category: Casualty files
Cambodia: NARRATIVE, PHOTOGRAPHS, BIOGRAPHIC/SITE REPORT, JTFFA ACTIVITY
SUMMARY, CRASH SITE DATA SHEET
Country: Cambodia
Name: JOSEPH S. SMITH
Subjects: KAMPONG THUM PROVINCE; Aircraft downed; Crash site; Grave site;
Remains; Killed
Reel: 201
Page: 1-9
Type of Document: Miscellaneous
Date of Report: 00 00 00
Date of Information: 71 04 04
Originator: USAF
Category: Casualty files
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Airman Missing From Vietnam War Identified (Smith, J.)
By | June 03, 2017
U.S. Air Force Reserve Capt. Joseph Smith has now been accounted for.
On April 4, 1971, Smith was the pilot of a single-seat F-100D aircraft as
the leader in a flight of two aircraft on a combat mission over Cambodia.
While making a pass over the target, the pilot of the other aircraft noted
white vapor streaming from the left wing of Smith's aircraft. Smith's
aircraft
crashed a half mile from the target. The other pilot reported that he did
not see any ejection from Smith's aircraft and no beepers were heard. The
following day, an aerial search revealed aircraft wreckage over a large
area, however no remains were observed. Due to intense enemy activity in
the area, ground forces could not attempt a recovery operation. Smith was
declared missing in action as of April 4, 1971.
U.S. and Kingdom of Cambodia teams, with the assistance of the U.S.
Embassy's POW/MIA specialists, investigated the loss from 1996 until 2016.
During subsequent excavations of the crash site in Kampong Thom Province,
teams recovered possible osseous remains and wreckage associated
with an F-100D aircraft.
DNA and laboratory analysis was used in the identification of his remains.
The support from the Kingdom of Cambodia was vital to the success of this
recovery.
Interment services are pending.
For more information about DPAA, visit www.dpaa.mil, find us on social media
at www.facebook.com/dodpaa, or call 703-699-1420.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
His remains were still with the wreckage of his F-100, which was shot
down in Cambodia
on April 4, 1971, and were positively identified using DNA
and laboratory analysis in May 2017.
Captain Smith's services will be held at Saint Mary's Catholic Church in his
home town of Assumption,
Illinois on July 17th at 10 AM.
RRVFPA 07/02/17
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
From: Duus,
Kristen L SFC USARMY DPAA EC (US) [mailto:kristen.l.duus.mil@mail.mil]
Sent: 13 July, 2017 11:48
To: Undisclosed recipients:
Subject: LOCAL CONNECTION: Illinois Airman Accounted For From Vietnam War
Dear Editor,
The Defense
POW/MIA Accounting Agency has announced that U.S. Air Force
Reserve
Capt. Joseph S. Smith, accounted for on May 12,
2017, will be buried
July 17 in his hometown.
Smith, 25, of
Assumption, Illinois, was killed during the Vietnam War.
His widow,
Elaine Mills, is available for interviews if you would like to
contact her at
rem1011@gmail.com.
The Department
of Defense has the attached photo of Smith on file.
/////
On April 4,
1971, Smith was the pilot of a single-seat F-100D aircraft as
the leader in a
flight of two aircraft on a combat mission over Cambodia.
While making a
pass over the target, the pilot of the other aircraft noted
white vapor
streaming from the left wing of Smith's aircraft. Smith's
aircraft crashed
a half mile from the target. The other pilot reported that
he did not see
any ejection from Smith's aircraft and no beepers were heard.
The following
day, an aerial search revealed aircraft wreckage over a large
area, however no
remains were observed. Due to intense enemy activity in
the area, ground
forces could not attempt a recovery operation. Smith was
declared missing
in action as of April 4, 1971.
U.S. and Kingdom
of Cambodia teams, with the assistance of the U.S.
Embassy's
POW/MIA specialists, investigated the loss from 1996 until 2016.
During
subsequent excavations of the crash site in Kampong Thom Province,
teams recovered
possible osseous remains and wreckage associated with an
F-100D aircraft.
To identify
Smith's remains, scientists from DPAA and the Armed Forces
Medical Examiner
System used mitochondrial (mtDNA) DNA analysis, which
matched his
family, as well as anthropological analysis, which matched his
records, and
circumstantial evidence.
The support from
the Kingdom of Cambodia was vital to the success of this
recovery.
Today there are
1,607 American servicemen and civilians that are still
unaccounted for
from the Vietnam War.
For additional
information on the Defense Department's mission to account
for Americans
who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA
website at
www.dpaa.mil,
find us on social media at
www.facebook.com/dodpaa
or call (703)
699-1420.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
02/2020
https://dpaa.secure.force.com/dpaaProfile?id=a0Jt000000kZJbbEAG
CAPT JOSEPH STANLEY SMITH
-
Conflict
-
Service
-
Status
-
Date of Accounting
-
VIETNAM WAR
-
UNITED STATES AIR FORCE
-
Accounted For
-
05/26/2017
On May 26, 2017, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
identified the remains of Captain Joseph Stanley Smith, missing
from the Vietnam War.
Captain Joseph Stanley Smith entered the U.S. Air Force from
Illinois and was a member of the 612th Tactical Fighter
Squadron, 401st Tactical Fighter Wing. On April 4, 1971, he was
the pilot of a single-seat F-100D Super Sabre (tail number
56-3120, call sign "Blade 05") as the lead plane in a
two-aircraft combat mission against enemy targets in Kampong
Thum Province, Cambodia. After making a pass over the target,
Capt Smith's aircraft crashed and caught fire. He did not eject
before his aircraft went down and he was killed in the crash,
but his remains were not recovered at the time due to the enemy
presence preventing any ground search. In 2002, a unilateral
team excavated the crash site in Cambodia and recovered human
remains during the investigation, and modern forensic techniques
identified these remains as those of Capt Smith.
Captain Smith 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.
Capt JOSEPH STANLEY SMITH
-
Unit 612
TFG SQ
-
Historical Country of Loss
Cambodia
-
Current Country of Loss
CAMBODIA
-
Home of Record IL