The Wall › Panel 45E › California › Lee David Benson
LEE DAVID BENSON
Lieutenant (junior grade) · U.S. Navy
August 17, 1943 – March 17, 1968
Service recordLee David Benson, of San Mateo, California, served as a Lieutenant (junior grade) in the U.S. Navy. He died on March 17, 1968, in North Vietnam, at age 24. His name is inscribed on Panel 45E, Line 10 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 45E · Line 10
Names are inscribed in the order of loss, starting at Panel 1E at the apex and ending at Panel 1W. At the Memorial, find the panel number at the base and count down from the top line.
Remember
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Service
- Branch
- U.S. Navy
- Rank
- Lieutenant (junior grade) (LTJG)
- Service
- Reserve / National Guard
- Occupation
- Url Pilot (1315)
- Unit (as recorded)
- VS 23 USS YORKTOWN CVS 10
- Born
- August 17, 1943
- Home of record
- San Mateo, California (San Mateo County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- March 17, 1968
- Age
- 24
- Country
- North Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Unknown
- Remains
- Not recovered as of the 2008 DoD record
Context · from the records
What was happening
48 names on the Wall carry the date March 17, 1968. In March 1968, 1,767 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The unit recorded as “VS 23 USS YORKTOWN CVS 10”, his unit in the record, lost 4 of its members that month.
He died in North Vietnam while Operation Rolling Thunder was under way. Operation Rolling Thunder (March 1965–November 1968) was the sustained U.S. bombing campaign against North Vietnam, flown by Air Force fighter-bombers from Thailand and Navy aircraft from carriers in the Gulf of Tonkin against some of the densest air defenses in the world.
His remains had not been recovered when the 2008 record was compiled. The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency continues to search for Americans still missing from the war; families can find case information through dpaa.mil.
Read the history
On the Wall
Also on Panel 45E, Line 10
- HERMANN DOELGER-LANDIVARPrivate First Class · March 17, 1968
- ROGER EVANS DUNCANSpecialist Four · March 17, 1968
- JOHN FOLDVARY JRCorporal · March 17, 1968
- CARL EDWARD GARZAPrivate First Class · March 17, 1968
Same unit, same day
- THOMAS DAVID BARBERAirman · Panel 45E, Line 7
- DONALD RICHARD HUBBSCommander · Panel 45E, Line 12
- RANDALL JOHN NIGHTINGALEPetty Officer Second Class · Panel 45E, Line 14
From San Mateo
- ROBERT LAURENCE ARMONDCaptain · June 18, 1965
- RICHARD ARTHUR SULLIVANPrivate First Class · January 24, 1966
- JOHN HARRY GRAHAMStaff Sergeant · February 28, 1967
- RICHARD ORDELL LOZENSKILance Corporal · May 19, 1967
- ALFRED JOSEPH CORNEJOPrivate First Class · August 20, 1967
- GORDON MICHAEL REEVESLance Corporal · September 2, 1967
- WILLIAM CARL BURNS JRHospitalman · September 4, 1967
- GEORGE WILLIAM DEKKERSpecialist Four · September 24, 1967
- DAVID JOHN SPINALISpecialist Four · October 15, 1967
- VERNON BARTON RAINSPrivate First Class · December 27, 1967
Source. U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Casualty Analysis System, Vietnam Conflict Extract Data File (as of April 29, 2008), Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Record Group 330, National Archives (NAID 2240992). Panel and line as recorded in that file. This page presents the official record and its historical context; no biography has been written for him yet. See something wrong? Report a correction.