Name: Michael Andrew Miller
Rank/Branch: O2/US Air Force
Unit:
Date of Birth: 12 March 1945
Home City of Record: Tucson AZ
Date of Loss: 28 March 1969
Country of Loss: South Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 165223N 1064635E (XD892663)
Status (in 1973): Killed/Body Not Recovered
Category: 2
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: F4D
Other Personnel in Incident: Robert A. Belcher (missing)

REMARKS:

SYNOPSIS: The Phantom, used by Air Force, Marine and Navy air wings, served a
multitude of functions including fighter-bomber and interceptor, photo and
electronic surveillance. The two man aircraft was extremely fast (Mach 2), and
had a long range (900 - 2300 miles, depending on stores and mission type). The
F4 was also extremely maneuverable and handled well at low and high altitudes.
The F4 was selected for a number of state-of-the-art electronics conversions,
which improved radar intercept and computer bombing capabilities enormously.
Most pilots considered it one of the "hottest" planes around.

Maj. Robert A. Belcher and 1Lt. Michael A. Miller probably felt fortunate to
fly the F4. The two were assigned a combat mission on March 28, 1969 in their
F4D. When the aircraft was near the city of Bo Ho Su, in Quang Tri Province,
South Vietnam, about 5 miles from the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), it was shot
down, and both Belcher and Miller were thought to have been killed.

Belcher and Miller are listed among the missing because their bodies were not
recovered to bury in America. Families of those classified Killed/Body Not
Recovered, Missing in Action and Prisoner of War consider all the men missing
to be prisoners of war - dead or alive. They understand that even the most
apparent "death" could have meant survival. They write no American soldier off
until there is proof they are dead and their bodies returned.

Sadly, there are many who, like Belcher and Miller, appear to have died the day
they were lost. Even more tragic are the cases of hundreds who were last known
to be alive, or known to be a prisoner of war, or who simply disappeared with
no trace. Nearly 10,000 reports have been received by the U.S. Government
concerning these Americans who are still missing, including over 1000
eye-witness reports of captive Americans. Many authorities believe that there
could be hundreds of Americans still alive in enemy hands today.

As long as even one American remains in enemy hands, there can be no honor in
the deaths of Belcher and Miller, nor in the deaths of the nearly 60,000 young
Americans who died in Vietnam. If Belcher and Miller, by some chance survived,
what would they think of their country? It's time we brought our men home.

(1Lt. Michael A. Miller graduated from the University of Arizona.)

Return to POW/MIA Index to read about another missing American.