| Date: 28 July 1967 |
| Aircraft type: F-105D Thunderchief |
| Serial Number: 62-4334 |
| Military Unit: 34 TFS, 388 TFW |
| Service: USAF |
| Home Base: Korat |
| Name(s): |
| 1Lt Karl Wendell Richter (KIA) |
| It was usual in the F-105 squadrons to assign a pilot who was nearing the end of his tour to the relatively ‘easy’ targets in the southern provinces rather than the ‘hot’ targets around Hanoi and Haiphong in the north. Karl Richter was approaching his 200th mission at the end of his second tour and had already signed up for yet another tour in Southeast Asia, this time in the F-100. 1Lt Richter and his wingman were on an armed reconnaissance mission when they spotted a bridge in the mountains 35 miles west of Dong Hoi. Richter rolled in on the target but his aircraft (call sign Hotrod) was hit by AAA as it pulled up from its dive. The burning aircraft headed away from the target but after about 35 miles Karl Richter was forced to eject. Unfortunately, Richter landed badly on the sharp, limestone karst and was severely injured. When a HH-3E (call sign Jolly Green 55) arrived a PJ, TSgt Charles D Smith, was lowered 150 feet down the hoist and found that Richter had been critically injured with multiple broken bones indicating that he had probably snagged his parachute on a rock or a tree and then fallen some distance. Karl Richter died in the helicopter on the way back to safety. Despite his youth and the fact that he had only been in the USAF for three years at the time of his death, Karl Richter was regarded as one of the most experienced, dedicated and proficient F-105 pilots in Southeast Asia. He had shot down a MiG-17 on 21 September 1966 during a raid on SAM sites northwest of Haiphong and flew his 100th mission just three weeks later. After persistent requests he was allowed to return to Thailand to start another tour and it is thought that Richter may actually have passed the 200 mission mark before being killed. |
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