During the Vietnam War, my dad served in the Army. He told me many unusual stories about his military service. An unusual mystery of the Vietnam War is the disappearance of Flying Tiger Line Flight 739. The missing plane carried 107 passengers.
The incident took place on March 16, 1962. It was during the early days of the Vietnam War. Among the 107 passengers, more than 90 were military personnel. Flight 739 was flying from Travis Air Force Base in California to Tan Son Nhut International Airport in Saigon, South Vietnam. The plane disappeared after it stopped at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam for fuel. Family learned that there were no distress calls or signs of danger on the plane.
There is a theory that someone sabotaged the plane and it exploded. However, if this happened, why didn’t investigators locate any remains of the plane?
Within a few months of the plane’s disappearance, all 107 passengers were declared dead. No wreckage or clues were ever found to determine what happened to the doomed plane.
According to the military, the soldiers were going to South Vietnam to train South Vietnamese soldiers. Combat missions would not be part of their responsibilities. Essentially, it was a training mission.
Families of the missing men have disputed this claim. According to them, their loved ones were on a classified secretive special mission. Family members have also claimed that the men were selected from several different military institutions.
In response to the plane’s disappearance, family members have asked for more information. They received redacted documents that did not provide any useful information. Information about the missing plane remains classified. Considering that these passengers died while serving during a military conflict, you might expect them to be listed on the Vietnam Memorial wall in Washington, D.C.
However, if you thought so, you would be wrong. I was only able to find one memorial to these missing soldiers. Some families of the missing soldiers have unsuccessfully tried to have their loved ones added to the memorial. More than 60 years have passed since the incident. It doesn’t seem like adding any of the passengers to the Vietnam Memorial wall is a priority for anyone outside family.
Another fascinating aspect of this story is that before the plane vanished, some of the passengers had told their loved ones they might not make it home.
What would make these men make such a bold claim? Were they aware of the purpose of their flight? Or were they in the dark like their family members? What was the purpose of that 1962 flight? Were the men really just sent over to train South Vietnamese soldiers? Or was there an unmentioned dangerous mission? Today, the disappearance of flight 739 remains an unsolved mystery.
Marc is a long-time resident of Clermont County and an avid reader. Contact him through his website at www.themarcabe.com. Marc also has a podcast called Catch my Killer where he interviews family members seeking justice for their murdered loved ones. You can listen at www.catchmykiller.com.