The Wall › Panel 18E › Pennsylvania › Michael John Estocin
MICHAEL JOHN ESTOCIN
Commander · U.S. Navy
April 27, 1931 – April 26, 1967
Medal of Honor StoryPortrait: U.S. Navy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Michael John Estocin, of Turtle Creek, Pennsylvania, served as a Commander in the U.S. Navy. He was lost on April 26, 1967, in North Vietnam, and was later declared dead. His name is inscribed on Panel 18E, Line 92 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
Medal of Honor · awarded posthumously
For conspicuous gallantry
Michael John Estocin received the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest award for valor, for his actions on April 20, 1967. The official citation reads:
Captain Estocin's official Medal of Honor citation reads:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty on 20 and 26 April 1967 as a pilot in Attack Squadron 192, embarked in USS Ticonderoga (CVA-14). Leading a 3-plane group of aircraft in support of a coordinated strike against two thermal power plants in Haiphong, North Vietnam, on 20 April 1967, Capt. Estocin provided continuous warnings to the strike group leaders of the surface-to-air missile (SAM) threats, and personally neutralized 3 SAM sites. Although his aircraft was severely damaged by an exploding missile, he reentered the target area and relentlessly prosecuted a SHRIKE attack in the face of intense antiaircraft fire. With less than 5 minutes of fuel remaining he departed the target area and commenced in-flight refueling which continued for over 100 miles. Three miles aft of Ticonderoga, and without enough fuel for a second approach, he disengaged from the tanker and executed a precise approach to a fiery arrested landing. On 26 April 1967, in support of a coordinated strike against the vital fuel facilities in Haiphong, he led an attack on a threatening SAM site, during which his aircraft was seriously damaged by an exploding SAM; nevertheless, he regained control of his burning aircraft and courageously launched his SHRIKE missiles before departing the area. By his inspiring courage and unswerving devotion to duty in the face of grave personal danger, Captain Estocin upheld the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.
^ Cite error: The named reference citation was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
Citation text as reproduced in Wikipedia’s article on Michael John Estocin; Medal of Honor citations are official U.S. government records. See also the Congressional Medal of Honor Society and all Medal of Honor recipients on the Wall.
On the Wall
Panel 18E · Line 92
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
Did you know him? Family members and friends are invited to share a photograph or a memory. Nothing is posted until it has been reviewed.
Service
- Branch
- U.S. Navy
- Rank
- Commander (CDR)
- Service
- Regular
- Occupation
- Url Pilot (1310)
- Unit (as recorded)
- VA 192
- Born
- April 27, 1931
- Home of record
- Turtle Creek, Pennsylvania (Allegheny County)
Casualty
- Date of loss
- April 26, 1967
- Country
- North Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Declared Dead
- Circumstance
- Aircraft Crash — crew
- First reported
- Captured / prisoner of war
- Remains
- Not recovered as of the 2008 DoD record
Context · from the records
What was happening
49 names on the Wall carry the date April 26, 1967. In April 1967, 887 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
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
Also on Panel 18E, Line 92
- ROBERT WENDELL DAVISStaff Sergeant · April 26, 1967
- JOHN FRANCIS DUDASHColonel · April 26, 1967
- SHELLY EGLYPrivate First Class · April 26, 1967
- EMMANUEL SALVATORE FENECHSpecialist Four · April 26, 1967
From Turtle Creek
- LOUIS ARTHUR FRYESergeant First Class · October 27, 1968
- LAWRENCE JAMES BROWNPrivate First Class · December 7, 1968
- KENNETH WILLIAM RUBBOPrivate First Class · December 7, 1968
- CURTIS CHARLES KASTLERSpecialist Four · August 26, 1971
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. The Medal of Honor citation above is the official account of his actions. See something wrong? Report a correction.