Francis Anthony Walsh Jr.

Vietnam War
Unit497th Tactical Fighter Squadron
RankMajor U.S. Air Force
Entered Service FromWestport Connecticut
Date of DeathDecember 21 1972
StatusRecovered
Memorialized
Courts of the Missing
Court
A
Notes
Major Walsh was a member of the 497th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Ubon Air Base, Thailand. On December 21, 1972, he was a crewman on a Spectre Attack Aircraft Gunship II (AC-130A) on an interdiction mission along the Ho Chi Minh Trail in Laos. The aircraft was hit by hostile fire and was attempting to return to base, but the aircraft was going to crash so the order to bail out was given. His remains were recovered on February 21, 1985 and identified on July 1, 1985. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.
rosetta medal
When an individual’s remains have been accounted for by the U.S. Department of Defense, a rosette is placed next to the name on the Wall/Tablet/Court of the Missing to mark that the person now rests in a known gravesite.