| Date: 19 April 1967 |
| Aircraft type: F-105F Thunderchief |
| Serial Number: 63-8341 |
| Military Unit: 357 TFS, 355 TFW |
| Service: USAF |
| Home Base: Takhli |
| Name(s): |
| Maj Thomas Mark Madison (POW) |
| Maj Thomas James Sterling (POW) |
| An F-105F was lost on an Iron Hand mission, the tenth since the aircraft first deployed to Southeast Asia. Carbine flight was led by an F-105F (63-8301) flown by Maj Leo Thorsness and Capt Harry Johnson with Maj Madison and Maj Sterling flying the other Wild Weasel in the flight. The flight supported a raid on NVA barracks at Xuan Mai, 37 miles southwest of Hanoi. Two SAM sites near the target were attacked but Maj Madison’s aircraft (call sign Kingfish) was shot down, probably by a MiG-17. The other two aircraft in the flight were also engaged by MiGs and had to return home with battle damage leaving just the leader’s aircraft over the target. Thorsness circled the parachutes as Madison and Sterling floated down but then a MiG made a fast pass and Thorsness set off in pursuit and destroyed it with cannon fire. Capt Johnson had called for a SAR task force to attempt a rescue and Thorsness flew south to find a tanker to refuel before returning to where Madison and Sterling had landed. As he briefed the Sandy pilots on the situation Thorsness saw more MiGs and headed towards them. He damaged another of the MiGs with the last of his ammunition and then tried to decoy the remaining MiGs away from the Skyraiders. Eventually another flight of F-105s arrived and the MiGs retired after losing three more to the Thud drivers. As Thorsness was leaving the area he heard one of the F-105 pilots radio that he was lost and short of fuel. Instead of refuelling himself, Thorsness sent the tanker north to rendezvous with the other F-105. Thorsness and Johnson landed at Udorn with their fuel tanks reading empty. For his actions during this mission Leo Thorsness was awarded the Medal of Honor and Harry Johnson was awarded the Air Force Cross although they were unaware of this fact as they were shot down and captured on 30 April. Maj Madison and Maj Sterling were both released from captivity on 4 March 1973. |
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