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Sgt Duane Kimbrow
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Duncan, Paul E. (60528), Capt.
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The Shootdown of Flight 60528 September 2, 1958 On the 2nd of September 1958, Soviet MiG-17 pilots shot down a U.S. Air Force reconnaissance-configured C-130 aircraft over Soviet Armenia; 17 crewman were aboard. The MiGs attacked the unarmed aircraft after it inadvertently penetrated denied airspace. It crashed near the village of Sasnashen, 34 miles northwest of Yerevan, the Armenian capital.
The C-130 reconnaissance aircraft was readily recognizable as non-lethal. One MiG pilot identified it as a "four-engined transport." The C-130 (tail number 60528) crew members were based at Rhein-Main Air Base in Germany, but were on temporary duty at Incirlik Air Base, Adana, Turkey.
The aircraft carried six flight crew members from the 7406th Support Squadron and 11 USAF "back-enders" from Detachment One of the 6911th Radio Group Mobile.
On this day, the C-130 departed Incirlik on a reconnaissance mission along the Turkish-Armenian border. It was to fly from Adana on the Mediterranean coast to Trabzon on the Black Sea coast, turn right and fly to Van, Turkey. From Van, the pilot was to reverse course and "orbit" (i.e., fly a race-track pattern) between Van and Trabzon. This course would parallel the Soviet frontier, but the aircraft was not to approach the border closer than 100 miles. The aircraft's crew reported passing over Trabzon at an altitude of 25,500 feet. The crew acknowledged a weather report from Trabzon -- the last word heard from the flight. What happened next is unclear. The C-130 crew may have become disoriented by Soviet navigational beacons in Armenia and Soviet Georgia, which were on frequencies similar to those at Trabzon and Van--one signal in Soviet Georgia was stronger than that in Trabzon.
At that time, the Soviets denied downing the aircraft, claiming that the C-130 "fell" on their territory. On September 24, 1958, the Soviets returned six sets of remains, but, when queried, stated they had no information regarding the eleven missing crewmen. On February 6, 1959, seeking to get the Soviets to reveal more details, the United States in a session at the United Nations made public a tape recording of the Russian fighter pilots' conversations as they attacked the C-130. The Soviets continued to deny responsibility for the shootdown, and the fate of the remaining crew members remained unknown during the Cold War. S
Source: http://go.to/6911RGM
The Backenders:
MSgt George P. Petrochilos (Romanian Linguist)
TSgt Arthur L. Mello (Airborne Maint. Tech.)
A1C Robert J. Oshinskie (Romanian 203)
A2C Archie T. Bourg, Jr. (Airborne Maint. Tech.)
A2C Joel H. Fields (Russain Linguist)
A2C James E. Ferguson, Jr. (Russian Linguist)
A2C Harold T. Kamps (Serbo-Coation Linguist)
A2C Gerald C. Maggiacomo (Russian Linguist)
A2C Clement O. Mankins (Russian Linguist)
A2C Gerald H. Medeiros (Russian Linguist)
A2C Robert H. Moore (BulgarianLinguist))
The Aircrew:
Capt Rudy J. Swiestra (Aircraft Commander)
Capt Paul E. Duncan (Starboard Pilot)
Capt. John E. Simpson (Copilot)
1Lt Ricardo M. Villarreal (Lead Navigator)
Capt Edward J. Jeruss (Second Navigator)
SSgt Laroy Price (Flight Engineer)
Source: Larry Tart, The Price of Vigilance: Attacks on American Surveillance Flights, p.264
Other Comments:
"The remains of these airmen were identified as a group and were buried in Arlington National Cemetery, Wednesday, 2 September 1998. In 1958 the Soviet Union returned the partial remains of 6 of the 17 crewmen. Later that year the U.S. Air Force and the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology identified three of the six remains and the remaining 14 crewmen were listed as unaccounted-for. Identifications were made in 1996 and 1997 for the three remains unidentified from those repatriated in 1958.
A subsequent review of the case by the Air Force concluded that no crewmen had been able to escape from the aircraft. A recovery team from the U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory Hawaii excavated the crash site in 1993. The team recovered more than 2,000 bone and tooth fragments, life support equipment, personal effects and aircraft wreckage. Given the incomplete nature of the remains recovered from the crash site and those of the six men previously identified, a group remains identification was made for the entire crew.
A group remains identification is possible because the remains recovered represent all of the manifested crew."
Source:
http://www.6901st.org/release.htm
See also: http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/armenia.htm
Soviet Shoot Down of USAF C-130
From Month/Year
September / 1958
To Month/Year
September / 1958
Description The Shootdown of Flight 60528 September 2, 1958 On the 2nd of September 1958, Soviet MiG-17 pilots shot down a U.S. Air Force reconnaissance-configured C-130 aircraft over Soviet Armenia; 17 crewman were aboard. The MiGs attacked the unarmed aircraft after it inadvertently penetrated denied airspace. It crashed near the village of Sasnashen, 34 miles northwest of Yerevan, the Armenian capital.
The C-130 reconnaissance aircraft was readily recognizable as non-lethal. One MiG pilot identified it as a "four-engined transport." The C-130 (tail number 60528) crew members were based at Rhein-Main Air Base in Germany, but were on temporary duty at Incirlik Air Base, Adana, Turkey.
The aircraft carried six flight crew members from the 7406th Support Squadron and 11 USAF "back-enders" from Detachment One of the 6911th Radio Group Mobile.
On this day, the C-130 departed Incirlik on a reconnaissance mission along the Turkish-Armenian border. It was to fly from Adana on the Mediterranean coast to Trabzon on the Black Sea coast, turn right and fly to Van, Turkey. From Van, the pilot was to reverse course and "orbit" (i.e., fly a race-track pattern) between Van and Trabzon. This course would parallel the Soviet frontier, but the aircraft was not to approach the border closer than 100 miles. The aircraft's crew reported passing over Trabzon at an altitude of 25,500 feet. The crew acknowledged a weather report from Trabzon -- the last word heard from the flight. What happened next is unclear. The C-130 crew may have become disoriented by Soviet navigational beacons in Armenia and Soviet Georgia, which were on frequencies similar to those at Trabzon and Van--one signal in Soviet Georgia was stronger than that in Trabzon.
At that time, the Soviets denied downing the aircraft, claiming that the C-130 "fell" on their territory. On September 24, 1958, the Soviets returned six sets of remains, but, when queried, stated they had no information regarding the eleven missing crewmen. On February 6, 1959, seeking to get the Soviets to reveal more details, the United States in a session at the United Nations made public a tape recording of the Russian fighter pilots' conversations as they attacked the C-130. The Soviets continued to deny responsibility for the shootdown, and the fate of the remaining crew members remained unknown during the Cold War. S
Source: http://go.to/6911RGM
The Backenders:
MSgt George P. Petrochilos (Romanian Linguist)
TSgt Arthur L. Mello (Airborne Maint. Tech.)
A1C Robert J. Oshinskie (Romanian 203)
A2C Archie T. Bourg, Jr. (Airborne Maint. Tech.)
A2C Joel H. Fields (Russain Linguist)
A2C James E. Ferguson, Jr. (Russian Linguist)
A2C Harold T. Kamps (Serbo-Coation Linguist)
A2C Gerald C. Maggiacomo (Russian Linguist)
A2C Clement O. Mankins (Russian Linguist)
A2C Gerald H. Medeiros (Russian Linguist)
A2C Robert H. Moore (BulgarianLinguist))
The Aircrew:
Capt Rudy J. Swiestra (Aircraft Commander)
Capt Paul E. Duncan (Starboard Pilot)
Capt. John E. Simpson (Copilot)
1Lt Ricardo M. Villarreal (Lead Navigator)
Capt Edward J. Jeruss (Second Navigator)
SSgt Laroy Price (Flight Engineer)
