HESTLE, ROOSEVELT L. JR.

Name: Roosevelt L. Hestle, Jr.
Rank/Branch: O4/USAF
Unit:
Date of Birth: 02 March 1928
Home City of Record: Orlando FL
Date of Loss: 06 July 1966
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 212957N 1054437E (WJ776774)
Status (in 1973): Missing In Action
Category: 2
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: F105F

Other Personnel in Incident: Charles E. Morgan (remains returned)

Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project 15 October 1990 from one or more of
the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with
POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews.

REMARKS:  NO CHUTE-BEEPER OR SAR

SYNOPSIS: The F105 Thunderchief ("Thud"), in its various versions, flew more
missions against North Vietnam than any other U.S. aircraft. It also suffered
more losses, partially due to its vulnerability, which was constantly under
revision. The F model carried a second crewman which made it well suited for the
role of suppressing North Vietnam's missile defenses.

Maj. Roosevelt L. Hestle, Jr. was the pilot and Capt. Charles E. Morgan the
backseater onboard an F105F sent on a mission over North Vietnam on July 6,
1966. The aircraft was hit by anti-aircraft fire about 35 miles north-northwest
of Hanoi, and evidently hit the side of a mountain. No parachutes were observed,
and no emergency beepers were detected. Search and Rescue was not initiated.
Although the outlook was grim, neither man was declared Killed/Body Not
Recovered, but instead, both were classified Missing In Action.

One night NBC evening news aired footage from a press conference held in Hanoi.
Hestle's wife recognized her husband in the footage as the camera panned across
a group of American POWs and lingered on him. Hestle, a black man, had a bad
case of chicken pox as an adult, and his scarred face was quite recognizable.
Mrs. Hestle went to the NBC studios in Burbank, California and had them rerun
the film on a big screen so she could make doubly sure that it was indeed her
husband. She was convinced.

Mrs. Hestle waited, confident that her husband would return at the end of the
war. When the general prisoner release occurred in 1973, however, the U.S.
received some surprises. Some men whom intelligence analysts were certain had
perished with their planes had survived to be released. Of greater surprise,
perhaps, was that hundreds of Americans expected to return had not. Morgan and
Hestle had never been declared prisoners, but it was thought the Vietnamese
could account for both of them.

The biggest surprise came when Vietnam was overrun by communist forces, and
Vietnamese refugees began to flood the world. These refugees brought with them
thousands of reports of Americans still in captivity in their homeland. In early
1990, the numbers of such reports amassed to "millions of documents" and
resulted in thousands of interviews. Still, no solution has been found to secure
the freedom of any who may be still alive.

Mrs. Hestle kept looking for information. Seven released POWs called her to say
they had seen her husband in camp, and to rest assured he would come home soon.
Still, he didn't show up.

When the prisoner release was over, Mrs. Hestle approached the Defense
Department and inquired about her husband. She was told that she was mistaken,
that she must have seen one of the other two black airmen shot down, Cherry or
McDaniel. After all, DOD said, all blacks look alike. When Mrs. Hestle told them
seven POWs had seen her husband, they said they weould look into the matter.

When DOD recontacted her, they told Mrs. Hestle the witnesses had changed their
stories and now said they were mistaken. Mrs. Hestle checked with the seven as
well as the other two black airmen, Cherry and McDaniel. The seven POWs said
they had done no such thing; they maintained Hestle had been held with them.
Cherry and McDaniel said they had not been present when the newsfilm was shot.
Besides, Hestle was a full six inches taller than Cherry or McDaniel. His pock
marks made him very distinctive and he did not closely resemble anyone else.

On July 31, 1989, the Vietnamse returned remains to U.S. control which were
subsequently positively identified as being those of Capt. Charles E. Morgan.
For nearly 25 years, Morgan was a prisoner of war - dead or alive.

Many authorities who have examined the evidence now believe there are hundreds
of Americans still alive in Southeast Asia, captives of our long-ago enemy.
Certainly, there are hundreds of Americans the Vietnamese can account for --
including several score known to have been prisoners but never returned.

The Defense Department never acknowledged that Hestle was captured in spite of
seven eye-witness reports from American POWs and Mrs. Hestle's identification.
Hestle, a talented engineer, would be a very useful captive to the Vietnamese.

As long as even one American is unjustly held, we owe him our very best efforts
to secure his freedom. Roosevelt Hestle could still be alive, wondering why his
country has abandoned him.

Charles E. Morgan was promoted to the rank of Major and Roosevelt L. Hestle, Jr.
to the rank of Colonel during the period they were maintained Missing in Action.