| Date: 28 April 1968 |
| Aircraft type: F-4B Phantom |
| Serial Number: 153014 |
| Military Unit: VF-21 |
| Service: USN |
| Home Base: USS Ranger |
| Name(s): |
| Lt Cdr Diego Edyl "Duke" Hernandez (Survived) |
| Lt(jg) David John Lortscher (Survived) |
| When dusk fell a section of Navy Phantoms bombed storage caves at Ben Thuy, just to the south of Vinh. As the leader’s aircraft (call sign Sun Down 103) was pulling up from its attack it was hit by anti-aircraft fire. The port wing caught fire and the port engine had to be shut down. Lt Cdr Hernandez headed out to sea but within a few minutes the starboard engine also caught fire. The hydraulic system failed and the aircraft went out of control so the crew ejected close to a SAR destroyer about 15 miles offshore. They were quickly rescued by a Navy helicopter. After his return to the USA at the end of his combat tour David Lortscher ejected from another F-4 near San Diego on 14 September 1970. He repeated the performance on 22 September 1971, again near San Diego, when the canopy of his F-4 separated. David Lortscher made aviation history on 15 October 1973 when he ejected from a Phantom for the fourth time, this time during an exchange posting with the Royal Navy. This was not the only ejection for Duke Hernandez either as he had ejected from a Phantom during a raid on Haiphong on 16 December 1967.
HC-7 Rescue Helicopter Combat Support Squadron SEVEN (HC-7) was established September 1, 1967. While simultaneously providing several fleet support activities in the Gulf of Tonkin, HC-7 assumed the responsibility for North Vietnam naval combat search and rescue. HC-7 prepared for action using UH-2B Kaman Sea Sprite helos inherited from HC-1 and were stationed in detachments aboard small boys, destroyers (DDs) and Guided Missile Frigates (DLGs), patrolling off the coast of North Vietnam primarily for the purpose of Search and Rescue (SAR) duty. The information at the following link was compiled by Ron Milam, the historian for HC-7, from ship's deck logs, official HC-7 Rescue Reports, other official and unofficial documents, interviews with crew members and survivors, and other sources, including the Chris Hobson book upon which this site is based. The details for the rescue associated with this fixed wing loss can be accessed by clicking on this link. |
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