textwarrengraydawson1960.html

North High School Wall of Honor
Gray Dawson Warren
Class of June, 1960

Research done by Rick Nehrling, Class of 1963.

Gray Dawson Warren

Gray was a member of North High's class of June, 1960. After graduation, he attended the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO, graduating in 1965. At the time of death, Gray was married. His service number was 482504529. Gray's name is listed on the Vietnam Wall in Washington, D.C. on Panel 17W, Line 122.

PERSONAL DATA
Gray Dawson Warren
Captain, USAF
Home of Record: Des Moines, Iowa

Captain
435th Tactical Fighter Squadron
Air Force of the United States
22May 1942 - 26 October 1969
Des Moines, Iowa
On The Wall: Panel 17W Line 122


	photo of Gray Warren

When North Vietnam began to increase their military strength in South Vietnam, they intruded on neutral Laos for sanctuary, just as they had done years before during the war with the French. Just inside the Laotian border along the length of the southern part of North Vietnam and the northern and central part of South Vietnam, North Vietnam had constructed and maintained a roadway. The roadway was called the "Ho Chi Minh Trail", and it was used to transport troops, weapons, supplies, and equipment from North Vietnam to South Vietnam to fight the war.

The border between Laos and North Vietnam has a mountain range separating the two countries. For the North Vietnamese to get troops and supplies onto the Ho Chi Minh Trail, they had to cross from North Vietnam into Laos through three main mountain passes, the Mu Gia, Bartholemy, and Ban Karai. As the war escalated, the North Vietnamese established substantial missile sites at these passes to try to stop US planes from attacking the convoys going through the passes toward the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The passes were also frequently used by US fighters as they flew from Thailand to Vietnam on bombing missions.

Captain Gray Dawson Warren's service in Vietnam started on October 26, 1969. He was assigned to the 435th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Ubon RTAFB, Thailand (Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand). That same day, Gray and First Lieutenant Neil S. Bynam were in an F-4D Phamtom (tail number 65-0751), call sign WOLF05) on a forward air control mission over Khammouane Province, Laos, along the Ho Chi Minh Trail near the Ban Karai Pass.

During this mission, they located construction equipment, including a bulldozer, on a road about 15 miles west of the DMZ, near the village of Ban Son. They made two passes over the bulldozer. On the third pass, a low angle pass, they hit the bulldozer with a pod of high explosive 5" Zuni rockets, destroying the bulldozer. After they fired their rockets, Gray's plane failed to pull up, and the plane impacted the ground approximately 100 meters upslope from the bulldozer. The plane exploded on impact, scattering wreckage over a 400 meter area. The coordinates of the crash are XE212041.

Other forward air control aircraft in the area witnessed the attack on the bulldozer and the impact of Gray's plane. Those aircraft immediately initiated search and rescue operations. Although no enemy fire had been encountered before Gray's plane attacked the bulldozer, the other forward air control aircraft received small arms and 37mm antiaircraft fire. After two hours, with no visual signs of survivors, the search was terminated.

Both Gray and First Lieutenant Neil Stanley Bynum (rank changed to Captain during the period he was classified as Missing) were intially classified as Missing in Action. During an annual review of their status, the view board did not find any evidence that either man escaped the aircraft, and Gray Warren was reclassified as Killed in Action on October 26, 1969. His body was not recovered. NOTE: Records obtained by the North High Class of 1960 obituary historian indicate Gray's remains are interred at the US Air Force Academy Cemetery in Colorado Springs, CO. He lies in Section MEM, Row K, Plot 008.

References

(1) Information was obtained from the Records on Military Personnel Who Died, were Missing in Action, or Prisoners of War as a result of the Vietnam War. This document can be found online at the National Archives and Records Administration at http://www.archives.gov/.

(2) The comprehensive list of names from North High's 1893-2009 graduation classes are from Claradell Shedd's North Des Moines High School website. The names of North High School graduates can be found online at: http://ndmhs.com/. Gray Dawson Warren's 1960 class page is: http://ndmhs.com/pages/yearclass1960(2010.50).html.

Deceased: Died: KIA; October 26, 1969.

Music: "Ballad of the Green Beret"