Joseph C. Cheney
Encyclopedia
Joseph Curtis Cheney, II (August 14, 1920 - September 5, 1963) was a pilot
for Air America during the Vietnam War
.
On September 5, 1963, Cheney took off on a mission with fellow Americans
, Eugene DeBruin
and Charles Herrick
, Thai
Pisidhi Indradat, Prasit Promsuwan and Prasit Thanee, and Chinese
Y.C. To. During a flight over Laos
, his C-46 aircraft was hit by ground fire and crashed about 2 kilometers from Tchepone in the Savannakhet Province.
Cheney and co-pilot Herrick were killed in the crash. DeBruin, Y.C. To, and the three Thai
nationals parachute
d to safety, but were immediately captured by the Pathet Lao
.
Cheney's remains were returned to the United States
on July 10, 2001.
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
for Air America during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.
On September 5, 1963, Cheney took off on a mission with fellow Americans
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Eugene DeBruin
Eugene DeBruin
Eugene Henry DeBruin was a US Air Force staff sergeant, and a member of Air America serving in Laos during the Second Indochina War. "Gene" DeBruin was working as a "kicker" for Air America in 1963 when his C-46 was shot down. He was a POW at a Pathet Lao prison camp in Laos until he and other...
and Charles Herrick
Charles Herrick
Charles Grant Herrick was a co-pilot for Air America during the Vietnam War.On September 5, 1963, Herrick took off on a mission with fellow Americans, Eugene DeBruin and Joseph C. Cheney, Thai Pisidhi Indradat, Prasit Promsuwan and Prasit Thanee, and Chinese Y.C. To...
, Thai
Thai people
The Thai people, or Siamese, are the main ethnic group of Thailand and are part of the larger Tai ethnolinguistic peoples found in Thailand and adjacent countries in Southeast Asia as well as southern China. Their language is the Thai language, which is classified as part of the Kradai family of...
Pisidhi Indradat, Prasit Promsuwan and Prasit Thanee, and Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
Y.C. To. During a flight over Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
, his C-46 aircraft was hit by ground fire and crashed about 2 kilometers from Tchepone in the Savannakhet Province.
Cheney and co-pilot Herrick were killed in the crash. DeBruin, Y.C. To, and the three Thai
Thai people
The Thai people, or Siamese, are the main ethnic group of Thailand and are part of the larger Tai ethnolinguistic peoples found in Thailand and adjacent countries in Southeast Asia as well as southern China. Their language is the Thai language, which is classified as part of the Kradai family of...
nationals parachute
Parachute
A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag, or in the case of ram-air parachutes, aerodynamic lift. Parachutes are usually made out of light, strong cloth, originally silk, now most commonly nylon...
d to safety, but were immediately captured by the Pathet Lao
Pathet Lao
The Pathet Lao was a communist political movement and organization in Laos, formed in the mid-20th century. The group was ultimately successful in assuming political power after the Laotian Civil War. The Pathet Lao were always closely associated with Vietnamese communists...
.
Cheney's remains were returned to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on July 10, 2001.
See also
- KIAKilled in actionKilled in action is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their own forces at the hands of hostile forces. The United States Department of Defense, for example, says that those declared KIA need not have fired their weapons but have been killed due to...
- Dieter DenglerDieter DenglerDieter Dengler was a United States Navy Naval aviator during the Vietnam War. He was one of the two survivors , out of seven, to escape from a Pathet Lao prison camp in Laos. He was rescued after 23 days on the run, and was the first captured U.S...
- Duane W. MartinDuane W. MartinDuane Whitney Martin was an American Air Force officer and prisoner of war during the Vietnam War.Martin was assigned to Detachment 1 38th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron , based at Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand. On September 20, 1965, Captain Thomas J. Curtis, Martin,...
- Pisidhi IndradatPisidhi IndradatPisidhi Indradat is a Thai civilian who worked as a "kicker" with Air America during the Vietnam War. His job was to kick the pallets of food and supplies down the plane to aid the refugees of the war....
- Rescue DawnRescue DawnRescue Dawn is a 2007 war drama film directed by Werner Herzog, based on an adapted screenplay written from his acclaimed 1997 documentary, Little Dieter Needs to Fly...