Incident Overview
On an unspecified date, a four-engine aircraft departed Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, en route to Kadena Air Force Base in Okinawa, Japan. The aircraft carried a crew of eight individuals. While cruising along the Vietnamese coastline approximately 72 kilometers northeast of Nha Trang, the aircraft experienced an in-flight explosion and subsequently crashed into the sea off the coast of Phú Hiệp.
Crew
The crew members who perished in the accident were identified as Lt Cdr Ralph Burton Cobbs, Lt Donald Edwin Siegwarth, Lt Clement Olin Stevenson, Lt Edward Leon Romig, AN M. J. Savoy, YN2 Jack Ishum Dempsey, ADJ2 Curtis David Collette, and ADR2 Stanley Jon Freng. All eight crew members were killed.
Investigation and Probable Cause
Official findings from the investigation indicated that the explosion was suspected to be the result of sabotage by Vietnamese communist sympathizers who worked at the base. No further details regarding the investigation or supporting evidence were provided in the source.