| Date: 26 August 1972 |
| Aircraft type: F-4J Phantom |
| Serial Number: 155811 |
| Military Unit: VMFA-232, MAG-15 |
| Service: USMC |
| Home Base: Nam Phong |
| Name(s): |
| 1Lt Sam Gary Cordova (KIA) |
| 1Lt Darrell L Borders (Survived) |
| In addition to their close air support and strike duties, the two Marine Corps Phantom squadrons based at Nam Phong also supplemented the USAF in flying combat air patrols over Laos. It was during a BARCAP mission over northern Laos that VMFA-232 lost an aircraft on the 26th. A flight of aircraft was orbiting over the North Vietnamese/Laotian border about 25 miles northeast of Sam Neua when it was vectored towards a MiG by Teaball, a newly-commissioned radar control facility that was not renowned for its reliability. As the Phantoms were approaching the MiGs, Teaball had a systems failure and before Red Crown could pass radar vectors to the Phantoms the MiGs had flashed past. 1Lt Cordova’s aircraft (call sign Motion 2) was hit by an Atoll missile that struck the Phantom’s tail and set it on fire. The crew ejected from the stricken aircraft and 1Lt Cordova spoke to other aircraft in the vicinity on his survival radio as he was parachuting down to earth. Apparently he landed in a ravine and reported that he could hear enemy troops nearby. His last transmission spoke of imminent capture but it appears that he was killed either during or after capture as he did not appear in any of the known POW camps. His navigator, 1Lt Borders, was luckier as he was rescued by a USAF HH-53C from the 40th ARRS. The mortal remains of Sam Cordova were eventually returned to the USA on 15 December 1988. This was the only Marine Corps Phantom lost to in air-to-air combat during the war. The North Vietnamese pilot credited with this kill was Lt Nguyen Duc Soat. 1Lt Cordova had ejected safely from a Phantom earlier in the month while on final approach to Nam Phong. |
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