Memorial placque placed on family plot in this cemetery for:
Actual burial here
MIA Gean P. Clapper
CMSGT US AIR FORCE VIETNAM
Unit: DET 1 TAC ALFT WG
Interment: Arlington National Cemetery,
15 Nov 2000, in Section 60 Site 7915
Sgt. Clapper was an 18-year veteran of the Air Force serving as a radio operator and gunner before he and others of a 13-man crew were shot down over Vietnam.
He was son of James and Thelma Clapper and married Marlene McMonigal daughter of Claude and Mrs. McMonigal. All are from the Duncansville area.
_____________
Altoona Mirror Article June 10, 1978 follows:
MAN LISTED AS KILLED IN ACTION
The Air Force recently announced that Chief Master Sgt. Gean P. Clapper of Duncansville has been listed as killed-in-action.
Sgt. Clapper, a radio operator aboard a C-130 cargo aircraft which was shot down over North Vietnam on Dec. 29, 1967, had been listed as missing-in-action. That status was officially changed by the Air Force on April 28.
He joined the Air Force in August 1949. He had attended Hollidaysburg High School and was an Altoona Mirror carrier.
Surviving are his wife, Kathleen, six children, his mother, Mrs. Thelma Clapper of Duncansville, RD 1, and seven brothers and sisters.
______________
FAMILY OF FORMER LOCAL MAN GIVEN AF AWARDS: SEP 30, 1978
Excerpts:
The family of a former local man(Sgt. Gean P. Clapper Sr.), has been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Purple Heart Medal by the Air Force to honor the contributions he made during his service. The recipients were Gean P. Clapper Jr. a Staff Sgt. with the Air Force in Plattsburg, N.Y., Gean's grandmother, three other children Michael, Renee, and Sheila.
==============
Courtesy of Michael Imler Dopson from: Ernie Cole, Major/USAF-Retired, a cousin who was also a USAF C-130 Gun Ship Pilot (Puff The Magic Dragon).
"I have included the story of the mission over North Viet Nam on which he and his commrades died. It is lengthy, but details an example of a previously classified operation during the Viet Nam war. (The term Blackbird was given to this operation because anyone hearing it would think of the SR-71 "Blackbird" aircraft and not realize that something else was going on).
CLAPPER, GEAN PRESTON
SERVICE: US AIR FORCE ( Complete Service Report )
RANK: E5 STATUS:
NR - REMAINS RETURNED/RECOVERED
DATE OF INCIDENT: 1967/12/29
DATE RETURNED: 1993/12/13
REMAINS ID DATE: 2000/03/20
HOME OF RECORD: ALTOONA, PA ( Complete State Report )
COUNTRY OF LOSS: N. VIETNAM
VEHICLE TYPE: C130E
Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office
Prisoners of War, Escapees, Returnees and Remains Recovered
Report for: Pennsylvania
USAF N. Vietnam Vietnam CLAPPER, GEAN PRESTON E5 NR 1967/12/29 1993/12/13 2000/03/20 ALTOONA, PA
CLAPPER, GEAN PRESTON
Remains Identified 10/28/00
Name: Gean Preston Clapper
Rank/Branch: E5/US Air Force
Unit: 314th Tactical Airlift Wing, Nha Trang Airbase, South Vietnam
Date of Birth: 24 July 1932
Home City of Record: Altoona PA
Date of Loss: 29 December 1967
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 220900N 1032200E (UK315501)
Status (in 1973): Missing In Action
Category: 4
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: C130E
Other Personnel In Incident: James R. Williams; Edward J. Darcy; Charles P.
Claxton; Wayne A. Eckley; Donald E. Fisher; Edwin N. Osborne; Frank C. Parker;
Gerald G. VanBuren; Gordon J. Wenaas; Jack McCrary; (all missing)
REMARKS: RADIO CONTACT LOST
Source: Compiled from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S.
Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families,
published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK in 2000.
SYNOPSIS: On December 29, 1967, a C130E aircraft departed Nha Trang Airbase shortly after midnight on an operational mission over North Vietnam. The eleven man crew aboard the aircraft included Maj. Charles P. Claxton; Capt. Edwin N. Osborne Jr., and Capt. Gerald G. Van Buren (all listed as pilots); and crewmen SSgt. Edward J. Darcy; SSgt. Gean P. Clapper; SSgt. Wayne A. Eckley; LtCol.Donald E. Fisher; TSgt. Jack McCrary; Capt. Frank C. Parker III; Capt. Gordon J. Wenaas; and Sgt. James R. Williams.
At 4:30 a.m., the pilot made radio contact with Nha Trang and said the mission was progressing as scheduled. No further contact was made. The aircraft's last known position was in extreme northwest North Vietnam, in mountainous Lai Chau Province. The eleven Americans aboard the aircraft were declared Missing in Action."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today we honor CMSGT Gean P. Clapper of Altoona, Pennsylvania, who fell on this day in 1967. He is remembered by his family and friends of the family:
"Gean was an 18-year veteran of the Air Force serving as a radio operator and gunner aboard a C-130E special mission aircraft assigned to Det 1, 314th Tactical Airlift Wing, Nha Trang Airbase, South Vietnam. His aircraft was lost over Lai Chau Province North Vietnam on Dec. 29, 1967. Gean was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Purple Heart medals by the Air Force to honor the contributions he made during his service."
Gean is remembered on Panel 32E, Line 91 of The Wall→https://bit.ly/393n21N
Contributor: Brandon O'Rear (48115948) • [email protected]
Actual burial here
MIA Gean P. Clapper
CMSGT US AIR FORCE VIETNAM
Unit: DET 1 TAC ALFT WG
Interment: Arlington National Cemetery,
15 Nov 2000, in Section 60 Site 7915
Sgt. Clapper was an 18-year veteran of the Air Force serving as a radio operator and gunner before he and others of a 13-man crew were shot down over Vietnam.
He was son of James and Thelma Clapper and married Marlene McMonigal daughter of Claude and Mrs. McMonigal. All are from the Duncansville area.
_____________
Altoona Mirror Article June 10, 1978 follows:
MAN LISTED AS KILLED IN ACTION
The Air Force recently announced that Chief Master Sgt. Gean P. Clapper of Duncansville has been listed as killed-in-action.
Sgt. Clapper, a radio operator aboard a C-130 cargo aircraft which was shot down over North Vietnam on Dec. 29, 1967, had been listed as missing-in-action. That status was officially changed by the Air Force on April 28.
He joined the Air Force in August 1949. He had attended Hollidaysburg High School and was an Altoona Mirror carrier.
Surviving are his wife, Kathleen, six children, his mother, Mrs. Thelma Clapper of Duncansville, RD 1, and seven brothers and sisters.
______________
FAMILY OF FORMER LOCAL MAN GIVEN AF AWARDS: SEP 30, 1978
Excerpts:
The family of a former local man(Sgt. Gean P. Clapper Sr.), has been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Purple Heart Medal by the Air Force to honor the contributions he made during his service. The recipients were Gean P. Clapper Jr. a Staff Sgt. with the Air Force in Plattsburg, N.Y., Gean's grandmother, three other children Michael, Renee, and Sheila.
==============
Courtesy of Michael Imler Dopson from: Ernie Cole, Major/USAF-Retired, a cousin who was also a USAF C-130 Gun Ship Pilot (Puff The Magic Dragon).
"I have included the story of the mission over North Viet Nam on which he and his commrades died. It is lengthy, but details an example of a previously classified operation during the Viet Nam war. (The term Blackbird was given to this operation because anyone hearing it would think of the SR-71 "Blackbird" aircraft and not realize that something else was going on).
CLAPPER, GEAN PRESTON
SERVICE: US AIR FORCE ( Complete Service Report )
RANK: E5 STATUS:
NR - REMAINS RETURNED/RECOVERED
DATE OF INCIDENT: 1967/12/29
DATE RETURNED: 1993/12/13
REMAINS ID DATE: 2000/03/20
HOME OF RECORD: ALTOONA, PA ( Complete State Report )
COUNTRY OF LOSS: N. VIETNAM
VEHICLE TYPE: C130E
Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office
Prisoners of War, Escapees, Returnees and Remains Recovered
Report for: Pennsylvania
USAF N. Vietnam Vietnam CLAPPER, GEAN PRESTON E5 NR 1967/12/29 1993/12/13 2000/03/20 ALTOONA, PA
CLAPPER, GEAN PRESTON
Remains Identified 10/28/00
Name: Gean Preston Clapper
Rank/Branch: E5/US Air Force
Unit: 314th Tactical Airlift Wing, Nha Trang Airbase, South Vietnam
Date of Birth: 24 July 1932
Home City of Record: Altoona PA
Date of Loss: 29 December 1967
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 220900N 1032200E (UK315501)
Status (in 1973): Missing In Action
Category: 4
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: C130E
Other Personnel In Incident: James R. Williams; Edward J. Darcy; Charles P.
Claxton; Wayne A. Eckley; Donald E. Fisher; Edwin N. Osborne; Frank C. Parker;
Gerald G. VanBuren; Gordon J. Wenaas; Jack McCrary; (all missing)
REMARKS: RADIO CONTACT LOST
Source: Compiled from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S.
Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families,
published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK in 2000.
SYNOPSIS: On December 29, 1967, a C130E aircraft departed Nha Trang Airbase shortly after midnight on an operational mission over North Vietnam. The eleven man crew aboard the aircraft included Maj. Charles P. Claxton; Capt. Edwin N. Osborne Jr., and Capt. Gerald G. Van Buren (all listed as pilots); and crewmen SSgt. Edward J. Darcy; SSgt. Gean P. Clapper; SSgt. Wayne A. Eckley; LtCol.Donald E. Fisher; TSgt. Jack McCrary; Capt. Frank C. Parker III; Capt. Gordon J. Wenaas; and Sgt. James R. Williams.
At 4:30 a.m., the pilot made radio contact with Nha Trang and said the mission was progressing as scheduled. No further contact was made. The aircraft's last known position was in extreme northwest North Vietnam, in mountainous Lai Chau Province. The eleven Americans aboard the aircraft were declared Missing in Action."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today we honor CMSGT Gean P. Clapper of Altoona, Pennsylvania, who fell on this day in 1967. He is remembered by his family and friends of the family:
"Gean was an 18-year veteran of the Air Force serving as a radio operator and gunner aboard a C-130E special mission aircraft assigned to Det 1, 314th Tactical Airlift Wing, Nha Trang Airbase, South Vietnam. His aircraft was lost over Lai Chau Province North Vietnam on Dec. 29, 1967. Gean was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Purple Heart medals by the Air Force to honor the contributions he made during his service."
Gean is remembered on Panel 32E, Line 91 of The Wall→https://bit.ly/393n21N
Contributor: Brandon O'Rear (48115948) • [email protected]
Memorial placque placed on family plot in this cemetery for:
Actual burial here
MIA Gean P. Clapper
CMSGT US AIR FORCE VIETNAM
Unit: DET 1 TAC ALFT WG
Interment: Arlington National Cemetery,
15 Nov 2000, in Section 60 Site 7915
Sgt. Clapper was an 18-year veteran of the Air Force serving as a radio operator and gunner before he and others of a 13-man crew were shot down over Vietnam.
He was son of James and Thelma Clapper and married Marlene McMonigal daughter of Claude and Mrs. McMonigal. All are from the Duncansville area.
_____________
Altoona Mirror Article June 10, 1978 follows:
MAN LISTED AS KILLED IN ACTION
The Air Force recently announced that Chief Master Sgt. Gean P. Clapper of Duncansville has been listed as killed-in-action.
Sgt. Clapper, a radio operator aboard a C-130 cargo aircraft which was shot down over North Vietnam on Dec. 29, 1967, had been listed as missing-in-action. That status was officially changed by the Air Force on April 28.
He joined the Air Force in August 1949. He had attended Hollidaysburg High School and was an Altoona Mirror carrier.
Surviving are his wife, Kathleen, six children, his mother, Mrs. Thelma Clapper of Duncansville, RD 1, and seven brothers and sisters.
______________
FAMILY OF FORMER LOCAL MAN GIVEN AF AWARDS: SEP 30, 1978
Excerpts:
The family of a former local man(Sgt. Gean P. Clapper Sr.), has been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Purple Heart Medal by the Air Force to honor the contributions he made during his service. The recipients were Gean P. Clapper Jr. a Staff Sgt. with the Air Force in Plattsburg, N.Y., Gean's grandmother, three other children Michael, Renee, and Sheila.
==============
Courtesy of Michael Imler Dopson from: Ernie Cole, Major/USAF-Retired, a cousin who was also a USAF C-130 Gun Ship Pilot (Puff The Magic Dragon).
"I have included the story of the mission over North Viet Nam on which he and his commrades died. It is lengthy, but details an example of a previously classified operation during the Viet Nam war. (The term Blackbird was given to this operation because anyone hearing it would think of the SR-71 "Blackbird" aircraft and not realize that something else was going on).
CLAPPER, GEAN PRESTON
SERVICE: US AIR FORCE ( Complete Service Report )
RANK: E5 STATUS:
NR - REMAINS RETURNED/RECOVERED
DATE OF INCIDENT: 1967/12/29
DATE RETURNED: 1993/12/13
REMAINS ID DATE: 2000/03/20
HOME OF RECORD: ALTOONA, PA ( Complete State Report )
COUNTRY OF LOSS: N. VIETNAM
VEHICLE TYPE: C130E
Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office
Prisoners of War, Escapees, Returnees and Remains Recovered
Report for: Pennsylvania
USAF N. Vietnam Vietnam CLAPPER, GEAN PRESTON E5 NR 1967/12/29 1993/12/13 2000/03/20 ALTOONA, PA
CLAPPER, GEAN PRESTON
Remains Identified 10/28/00
Name: Gean Preston Clapper
Rank/Branch: E5/US Air Force
Unit: 314th Tactical Airlift Wing, Nha Trang Airbase, South Vietnam
Date of Birth: 24 July 1932
Home City of Record: Altoona PA
Date of Loss: 29 December 1967
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 220900N 1032200E (UK315501)
Status (in 1973): Missing In Action
Category: 4
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: C130E
Other Personnel In Incident: James R. Williams; Edward J. Darcy; Charles P.
Claxton; Wayne A. Eckley; Donald E. Fisher; Edwin N. Osborne; Frank C. Parker;
Gerald G. VanBuren; Gordon J. Wenaas; Jack McCrary; (all missing)
REMARKS: RADIO CONTACT LOST
Source: Compiled from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S.
Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families,
published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK in 2000.
SYNOPSIS: On December 29, 1967, a C130E aircraft departed Nha Trang Airbase shortly after midnight on an operational mission over North Vietnam. The eleven man crew aboard the aircraft included Maj. Charles P. Claxton; Capt. Edwin N. Osborne Jr., and Capt. Gerald G. Van Buren (all listed as pilots); and crewmen SSgt. Edward J. Darcy; SSgt. Gean P. Clapper; SSgt. Wayne A. Eckley; LtCol.Donald E. Fisher; TSgt. Jack McCrary; Capt. Frank C. Parker III; Capt. Gordon J. Wenaas; and Sgt. James R. Williams.
At 4:30 a.m., the pilot made radio contact with Nha Trang and said the mission was progressing as scheduled. No further contact was made. The aircraft's last known position was in extreme northwest North Vietnam, in mountainous Lai Chau Province. The eleven Americans aboard the aircraft were declared Missing in Action."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today we honor CMSGT Gean P. Clapper of Altoona, Pennsylvania, who fell on this day in 1967. He is remembered by his family and friends of the family:
"Gean was an 18-year veteran of the Air Force serving as a radio operator and gunner aboard a C-130E special mission aircraft assigned to Det 1, 314th Tactical Airlift Wing, Nha Trang Airbase, South Vietnam. His aircraft was lost over Lai Chau Province North Vietnam on Dec. 29, 1967. Gean was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Purple Heart medals by the Air Force to honor the contributions he made during his service."
Gean is remembered on Panel 32E, Line 91 of The Wall→https://bit.ly/393n21N
Contributor: Brandon O'Rear (48115948) • [email protected]
Actual burial here
MIA Gean P. Clapper
CMSGT US AIR FORCE VIETNAM
Unit: DET 1 TAC ALFT WG
Interment: Arlington National Cemetery,
15 Nov 2000, in Section 60 Site 7915
Sgt. Clapper was an 18-year veteran of the Air Force serving as a radio operator and gunner before he and others of a 13-man crew were shot down over Vietnam.
He was son of James and Thelma Clapper and married Marlene McMonigal daughter of Claude and Mrs. McMonigal. All are from the Duncansville area.
_____________
Altoona Mirror Article June 10, 1978 follows:
MAN LISTED AS KILLED IN ACTION
The Air Force recently announced that Chief Master Sgt. Gean P. Clapper of Duncansville has been listed as killed-in-action.
Sgt. Clapper, a radio operator aboard a C-130 cargo aircraft which was shot down over North Vietnam on Dec. 29, 1967, had been listed as missing-in-action. That status was officially changed by the Air Force on April 28.
He joined the Air Force in August 1949. He had attended Hollidaysburg High School and was an Altoona Mirror carrier.
Surviving are his wife, Kathleen, six children, his mother, Mrs. Thelma Clapper of Duncansville, RD 1, and seven brothers and sisters.
______________
FAMILY OF FORMER LOCAL MAN GIVEN AF AWARDS: SEP 30, 1978
Excerpts:
The family of a former local man(Sgt. Gean P. Clapper Sr.), has been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Purple Heart Medal by the Air Force to honor the contributions he made during his service. The recipients were Gean P. Clapper Jr. a Staff Sgt. with the Air Force in Plattsburg, N.Y., Gean's grandmother, three other children Michael, Renee, and Sheila.
==============
Courtesy of Michael Imler Dopson from: Ernie Cole, Major/USAF-Retired, a cousin who was also a USAF C-130 Gun Ship Pilot (Puff The Magic Dragon).
"I have included the story of the mission over North Viet Nam on which he and his commrades died. It is lengthy, but details an example of a previously classified operation during the Viet Nam war. (The term Blackbird was given to this operation because anyone hearing it would think of the SR-71 "Blackbird" aircraft and not realize that something else was going on).
CLAPPER, GEAN PRESTON
SERVICE: US AIR FORCE ( Complete Service Report )
RANK: E5 STATUS:
NR - REMAINS RETURNED/RECOVERED
DATE OF INCIDENT: 1967/12/29
DATE RETURNED: 1993/12/13
REMAINS ID DATE: 2000/03/20
HOME OF RECORD: ALTOONA, PA ( Complete State Report )
COUNTRY OF LOSS: N. VIETNAM
VEHICLE TYPE: C130E
Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office
Prisoners of War, Escapees, Returnees and Remains Recovered
Report for: Pennsylvania
USAF N. Vietnam Vietnam CLAPPER, GEAN PRESTON E5 NR 1967/12/29 1993/12/13 2000/03/20 ALTOONA, PA
CLAPPER, GEAN PRESTON
Remains Identified 10/28/00
Name: Gean Preston Clapper
Rank/Branch: E5/US Air Force
Unit: 314th Tactical Airlift Wing, Nha Trang Airbase, South Vietnam
Date of Birth: 24 July 1932
Home City of Record: Altoona PA
Date of Loss: 29 December 1967
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 220900N 1032200E (UK315501)
Status (in 1973): Missing In Action
Category: 4
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: C130E
Other Personnel In Incident: James R. Williams; Edward J. Darcy; Charles P.
Claxton; Wayne A. Eckley; Donald E. Fisher; Edwin N. Osborne; Frank C. Parker;
Gerald G. VanBuren; Gordon J. Wenaas; Jack McCrary; (all missing)
REMARKS: RADIO CONTACT LOST
Source: Compiled from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S.
Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families,
published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK in 2000.
SYNOPSIS: On December 29, 1967, a C130E aircraft departed Nha Trang Airbase shortly after midnight on an operational mission over North Vietnam. The eleven man crew aboard the aircraft included Maj. Charles P. Claxton; Capt. Edwin N. Osborne Jr., and Capt. Gerald G. Van Buren (all listed as pilots); and crewmen SSgt. Edward J. Darcy; SSgt. Gean P. Clapper; SSgt. Wayne A. Eckley; LtCol.Donald E. Fisher; TSgt. Jack McCrary; Capt. Frank C. Parker III; Capt. Gordon J. Wenaas; and Sgt. James R. Williams.
At 4:30 a.m., the pilot made radio contact with Nha Trang and said the mission was progressing as scheduled. No further contact was made. The aircraft's last known position was in extreme northwest North Vietnam, in mountainous Lai Chau Province. The eleven Americans aboard the aircraft were declared Missing in Action."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today we honor CMSGT Gean P. Clapper of Altoona, Pennsylvania, who fell on this day in 1967. He is remembered by his family and friends of the family:
"Gean was an 18-year veteran of the Air Force serving as a radio operator and gunner aboard a C-130E special mission aircraft assigned to Det 1, 314th Tactical Airlift Wing, Nha Trang Airbase, South Vietnam. His aircraft was lost over Lai Chau Province North Vietnam on Dec. 29, 1967. Gean was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Purple Heart medals by the Air Force to honor the contributions he made during his service."
Gean is remembered on Panel 32E, Line 91 of The Wall→https://bit.ly/393n21N
Contributor: Brandon O'Rear (48115948) • [email protected]
Inscription
CM SGT US AIR FORCE VIETNAM
Gravesite Details
MIA Death declared by military as Apr. 27,1978 in Vietnam
Family Members
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