Remains ID'd of Four Missing in Vietnam ( Heroes come Home)

WASHINGTON - The remains of four U.S. servicemen missing in action since the Vietnam War have been identified and will be returned to their families for burial, the Pentagon said Tuesday.

All from the Army's 101st Airborne Division, they are Maj. Jack L. Barker of Waycross, Ga.; Capt. John F. Dugan of Roselle, N.J.; Sgt. William E. Dillender of Naples, Fla.; and Pfc. John J. Chubb of Gardena, Calif.

Chubb will be buried in Inglewood, Calif., this week. Barker, Dugan and Dillender will be buried in April in Arlington National Cemetery, said the Defense Department POW/Missing Personnel Office.

Their helicopter was shot down on March 20, 1971, the office said in a statement.

Barker and Dugan were piloting a UH-1H Huey helicopter with Dillender and Chubb on board while on a troop extraction mission in the Savannakhet Province of Laos.

Officials said that as the helicopter approached the landing zone, it was hit by heavy enemy ground fire and exploded.

Between 1988 and 2001, joint U.S.-Lao People's Democratic Republic teams undertook four unsuccessful investigations and three excavations for the remains. Crash site surveys in 2002 and 2004 eventually found some remains, wreckage and insignia. The remains were identified by forensic anthropologists using medical and dental records, the Pentagon said.

From the Vietnam War, 1,807 Americans are still unaccounted for, 364 of those from Laos. Another 839 have been accounted for in Southeast Asia, 208 of those from Laos.

And the Hunter Home from the Hill
Words by R.L. Stevenson, Music & additional words by Tom Lewis

The lights here burn brightly, the welcome is warm,
And this is a haven from many's the storm,
A poet once said: "You can never go home.";
But now the wind's blowing chill,
Home is the sailor home from sea, and the hunter home from the hill.

So lay out a new course, North, South, East or West,
Make weight your anchor, sail on your last quest,
Steer for the one port you're sure to find rest,
Lay alongside with all skill,
Home is the sailor home from sea, and the hunter home from the hill.

Under the wide and the bright starry sky,
Dig me a grave, there let me lie,
Glad did I live and gladly I die,
I lay me down with a will,

And this be the verse that you 'grave for me:
Here he's at rest where he wanted to be,
Home is the sailor home from sea, and the hunter home from the hill.

BARKER, JACK LAMAR
Remains ID'd 08/30/2005
Name: Jack Lamar Barker
Rank/Branch: O4/US Army
Unit: Company B, 101st Aviation Battalion,
101st Airborne Division
Date of Birth: 22 March 1939
Home City of Record: Waycross GA
Date of Loss: 20 March 1971
Country of Loss: Laos
Loss Coordinates: 163544N 1962513E (XD515352)
Status (in 1973): Killed/Body Not Recovered
Category: 2
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: UH1H
Refno: 1731

Other Personnel in Incident: John J. Chubb; William E. Dillender; John F.
Dugan (all missing)

Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project 01 September 1990 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 2006.
REMARKS: EXPLODED FIRE NO SEARCH - J

SYNOPSIS: LAM SON 719 was a large offensive operation against NVA communications lines in Laos. The operation called for ARVN troops to drive west from Khe Sanh, cut the Ho Chi Minh Trail, seize Tchpone and return to
Vietnam. The ARVN would provide and command the ground forces, while U.S. Army and Air Force would furnish aviation airlift and supporting firepower.
The 101st Airborne Division commanded all U.S. Army aviation units in direct support of the operation. Most of the first part of the operation, begun January 30, 1971, was called Operation DEWEY CANYON II, and was conducted by
U.S. ground forces in Vietnam.

The ARVN were halfway on February 11 and positioned for the attack across the Laotian border. On 8 February, ARVN began to push into Laos. The NVA reacted fiercely, but the ARVN held its positions supported by U.S. airstrikes and resupply runs by Army helicopters.

President Nguyen Van Thieu ordered a helicopter assault on Tchepone, and the abandoned village was seized March 6. Two weeks of hard combat were necessary for the ARVN task force to fight its way back to Vietnam. Towards the end of the removal, a helicopter from Company B, 101st Aviation
Battalion was lost.

Flown by Maj. Jack L. Barker, the UH1H (serial #66-16185) was attempting to land to extract ARVN troops about 20 miles west of Khe Sanh. During the attempt, the aircraft came under enemy fire and was seen to spin, explode,
and catch fire, then to break up in the air. No signs of survivors were seen. The crew aboard the aircraft were PCF John J. Chubb, Sgt. William E. Dillender, and Capt. John F. Dugan. Because of the presence of enemy forces in the area, no subsequent search could be made for survivors.

Losses were heavy in Lam Son 719. The ARVN lost almost 50% of their force. U.S. aviation units lost 168 helicopters; another 618 were damaged. Fifty-five aircrewmen were killed, 178 wounded, and 34 missing in action in
the entire operation, lasting until April 6, 1971.

In all, nearly 600 Americans were lost in Laos, but because we did not negotiate with the Pathet Lao, no Americans held in Laos were released. Since that time, over 10,000 reports have been received relating to Americans prisoner, missing or unaccounted for in Southeast Asia. Although many authorities are convinced that hundreds remain alive, the U.S. has not secured the release of a single man.

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