The Wall › Panel 27E › California › Thomas G Derrickson II
THOMAS G DERRICKSON II
Lieutenant Colonel · U.S. Air Force
March 10, 1936 – October 12, 1967
Service recordThomas G Derrickson II, of Los Altos, California, served as a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Air Force. He was lost on October 12, 1967, in North Vietnam, and was later declared dead. His name is inscribed on Panel 27E, Line 97 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 27E · Line 97
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. Air Force
- Rank
- Lieutenant Colonel (LTCOL)
- Service
- Regular
- Unit (as recorded)
- 557 TFS 12 CSG
- Born
- March 10, 1936
- Home of record
- Los Altos, California (Santa Clara County)
Casualty
- Date of loss
- October 12, 1967
- Country
- North Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Declared Dead
- Circumstance
- Aircraft Crash — crew
- First reported
- Missing in action
- Remains
- Not recovered as of the 2008 DoD record
Context · from the records
What was happening
29 names on the Wall carry the date October 12, 1967. In October 1967, 906 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 27E, Line 97
- WILLIAM THOMAS PERKINS JRCorporal · October 12, 1967
- JOSEPH LOUIS POKERJIMPrivate · October 12, 1967
- RICHARD VROMAN SMITHPetty Officer Third Class · October 12, 1967
- ROBERT MILTON WADEStaff Sergeant · October 12, 1967
From Los Altos
- MICHAEL CHARLES DELACYCorporal · November 16, 1965
- DAVID CHARLES BROSTROMLieutenant (junior grade) · August 11, 1966
- ROBERT FRANCIS KLINE JRCorporal · March 30, 1968
- RICHARD WILLIAM CASEYSergeant · November 27, 1968
- VICTOR CHARLES NAVONE JRSpecialist Four · February 11, 1969
- JAMES RANDOLPH REGNOLDSPrivate First Class · March 21, 1969
- DANIEL JEFFREY SMITHSpecialist Four · November 10, 1969
- JOSEPH LESTER HARTSpecialist Four · March 29, 1970
- JAMES ALLYN DUENSINGLieutenant · January 30, 1973
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.