Incident
On a bombing mission over the A Shau Valley, two B-52D Stratofortresses departed Andersen AFB, Guam. While approaching the coast of South Vietnam, the aircraft collided and crashed into the mouth of the Mekong River, about 100 km south of Saigon. Three crew members from the first aircraft and three from the second were found alive.
Aircraft and Crew
The first aircraft, a Boeing B-52D-75-BO Stratofortress registered 56-0595, carried a crew of six: pilot Captain George Westbrook, copilot Captain Harold Dean Thompson, navigator Captain Charles Herman Blankenship, radio navigator First Lieutenant George Emerson Jones, electronic warfare officer Captain Toki Endo, and air gunner Master Sergeant Olen Burke McLaughlin.
The second aircraft, a Boeing B-52D-80-BO Stratofortress registered 56-0627, carried a crew of seven: pilot Major John Suther, copilot Captain William Creedon, navigator Lieutenant Rod Gable, aircraft commander Major General William Joseph Crumm, radio navigator Major Paul Andrew Avolese, electronic warfare officer Captain David Fritz Bittenbender, and air gunner Sergeant Lynn Chase.
Cause
It is believed the collision occurred when one of the crew wanted to modify his position in the formation.