James Boyd 'Jay' East Jr. was a native of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelor of science degree.
He was a T-38A 'Talon' Instructor Pilot assigned to the 3575th Pilot Training Wing, 3575th Pilot Training Squadron, Flight 1, 'Skid Row' at Vance Air Force Base, Enid, Oklahoma in 1965.
Jay and his fellow instructors, in 'Skid Row' flight, instructed many of my classmates in Class 65-F.
He then attended A-1 training at Hurlburt Field, Florida (Eglin, Air Force Auxiliary #9). He was assigned to the 4407th Combat Crew Training Squadron, in Class 69-05.
In February 1969, he was assigned to the 602nd Special Operations Squadron, 56th Special Operations Wing stationed at Nankon Phanom, Thailand where he flew A-1J 'Skyraider aka 'Spad' aircraft. The nickname 'Spad' stood for "Single Place Attack, Douglas". Here is the web page for the 602nd SOS. The 602nd SOS flew strike missions with the call sign of 'Firefly' and Search and Rescue (SAR) missions using the call sign 'Sandy''. The motto of the SAR forces in South East Asia was "That Others May Live".
On April 26, 1969, Major East was on a strike mission attacking an enemy mortar position near Phonsaven on the Plains de Jar (PDJ) in Laos when his A-1J Skyraider was struck by enemy ground fire. The aircraft crashed and exploded. I recall strafing the large stacks of 55 gallon drums containing high octane aviation gas stacked along the south side the runway at Phonsaven in the fall of 1969 when I was a Wolf FAC.
In 1994, a Lao witness identified a possible crash site associated with that of Major East. A joint U.S./Lao Recovery Team excavated the site later that year and found aircraft wreckage, pilot-related items, and human bone fragments. His remains were identified through DNA testing on July 28, 1997 by the U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii.
Major James B. East Jr. was a native of Oklahoma City Oklahoma. He graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelor of science degree. He was survived by his wife, Fritzie, and their three children - Jamie Sue, Kevin Kay, and Kip Dale. He was a member of Northridge Park Baptist Church in San Antonio Texas where he served as a Deacon.
During the three years that he was a member of Northridge Park, he made numerous contributions to the life of the church. He served as Vice-Chairman of the Deacon Body, chairman of the Youth committee, Director of the Church Bond Program, choir member, and as the Superintendent of Adult Sunday School Department. The countless ways in which he led and the served the church were far more than could be enumerated. He was truly a faithful and dedicated servant of the Lord.
Jay entered the United States Air Force in November, 1956 after graduation from college. He was stationed at various bases including; Malden AFB, Missouri, Robbins AFB, Georgia, Webb AFB, Texas, Clark AB, Philippines, Vance AFB, Oklahoma, and Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. At Randolph AFB he served as an instructor Pilot in T-38's and T-33s. He received orders to Nakhon Phanom, Thailand in late 1968. He received training in A-1 aircraft at Hurlburt field Florida and then proceeded to Thailand in February of 1969. On April 26, 1969 Major East's aircraft was struck by enemy ground fire over Laos. His wing man reported that his aircraft was struck in the wing and went down. No parachute was seen and his aircraft exploded on impact. At that time he was listed as missing in action. Later ground troops were able to reach the area and recovered his pistol and confirmed that the pilot would have been wearing the pistol and therefore is presumed dead. The pistol that was recovered suffered severe damage in that the barrel was bent about 20 degrees off its normal position. Major East was confirmed dead on June 21, 1969. His family was notified and a memorial service was held at the Randolph Air Force Base Chapel Number One at 2:30 pm on July 20, 1969, which was concluded with a missing man fly by.
August 24, 1997
Oklahoma Aviator Killed In Vietnam Is Laid to Rest
SAN ANTONIO (AP) - An Air Force pilot from Oklahoma who was shot down over Laos during a covert special operations mission during the Vietnam War 28 years ago has finally been laid to rest.
Air Force Major James B. East Jr., a father of three who was 35 at the time of his death, was buried Friday at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery.
East was listed as missing in action and later as killed in action in 1969.
His remains were recovered in 1994 after a Laotian citizen reported finding a possible crash site, and a recovery team excavated the site,finding the wreckage, pilot-related items and human bone fragments.
The remains were identified through DNA testing and returned to the United States in 1994.
East is survived by his wife, Fritzy Parham of Austin; a son, Kip East of Clovis, New Mexico; and two daughters, Jamie East of Oklahoma City and Kevin East of Austin.
Additional memorials can be seen at the Virtual Wall and at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On June 7, 1912 the following was received from Paul E. Griffin:
My name is Paul Griffin, and I have always lived in Ft. Worth, TX. I knew James Boyd East Jr. in grade school in the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th. grades (1942-1945). My family and his family went to the same neighborhood Baptist church. I remember his parents, and his brother, Bobby (William R.). In that time frame and in those school years, we knew him as J.B. East (although I knew it stood for James Boyd). He was simply called J.B. His father, James Boyd East, Sr., had a career in insurance and had some part time position at the Baptist church. His mother, Cora Virginia Jones East, was involved in school activities. In those days, I always liked J.B. and considered him a very good friend. We (in a little group of boys & girls) did many things together.
Since I never left Ft. Worth, I still see some of those people at a monthly luncheon that we attend. There were school activities that we shared. One was being in a grade school chorus and the music teacher, Miss Colquitt, would set up the chorus singing at various places around Ft. Worth...other schools, the Woman's Club, and even on a local radio station. The mothers would take us in little groups in their cars. I always liked to ride in Mrs. East's group as on the way back to school, she would stop and buy us each a soda pop at a gas station.
In the 7th grade, I was disappointed to learn that J.B.'s family was leaving and moving to Oklahoma City. Time went on, and I graduated high school in June, 1952. I always wondered what happened to J.B. East. No one had kept up with him, and we did not know.
In the time frame of 1959/1960 a funny thing happened. A married couple I knew often had small parties. Once at their house, I met a couple, Donna & Jimmy Vaughan. In talking, I found that Donna had grown up in Oklahoma City. I asked her if she had ever known a family named "East". Yes, she told me,....the J.B. East's had lived down the street, and she had dated J.B. Jr. Donna got their family address from her mother, and I wrote a letter to J.B. in care of his parents' address. Soon, I got a reply as J.B. Jr. was now in the Air Force, stationed in Hawaii. He sent me a Christmas card photo of him, his wife, Fritzie, and 2 children and a note asking about other people we had known in school. We exchanged Christmas cards for two or three years, and then I lost track of them again.
Through the years, I wondered what became of them. I knew his parents names, and with the magic of the computer, I found when and where they had each died. It was only about a year ago, I attempted and found Mrs. Cora East's obituary in the Oklahoma City paper. It was there in her story. Bobby was now an M.D. in west Texas, and it told of what had happened to J.B. Jr. His story was something out of a tragic but fascinating novel. Then I discovered that just by typing in "Major James Boyd East Jr." on the computer, the rest of his story appeared. It was sad to learn that he died at age 35, and not too many years after we had lost touch. Thanks to you or someone for telling his story, and we learned the rest of the story.
This week, our high school class of 1952 had a 60 year reunion, and I informed the 5 or 6 people who remembered J.B. about what became of him. Most of us are now in the 77--78 age group. Out of a class of 150 people, 52 are known to be deceased, and of course there are some that we never located and do not know about.
Sincerely,
Paul E. Griffin
He was a T-38A 'Talon' Instructor Pilot assigned to the 3575th Pilot Training Wing, 3575th Pilot Training Squadron, Flight 1, 'Skid Row' at Vance Air Force Base, Enid, Oklahoma in 1965.
Jay and his fellow instructors, in 'Skid Row' flight, instructed many of my classmates in Class 65-F.
He then attended A-1 training at Hurlburt Field, Florida (Eglin, Air Force Auxiliary #9). He was assigned to the 4407th Combat Crew Training Squadron, in Class 69-05.
In February 1969, he was assigned to the 602nd Special Operations Squadron, 56th Special Operations Wing stationed at Nankon Phanom, Thailand where he flew A-1J 'Skyraider aka 'Spad' aircraft. The nickname 'Spad' stood for "Single Place Attack, Douglas". Here is the web page for the 602nd SOS. The 602nd SOS flew strike missions with the call sign of 'Firefly' and Search and Rescue (SAR) missions using the call sign 'Sandy''. The motto of the SAR forces in South East Asia was "That Others May Live".
On April 26, 1969, Major East was on a strike mission attacking an enemy mortar position near Phonsaven on the Plains de Jar (PDJ) in Laos when his A-1J Skyraider was struck by enemy ground fire. The aircraft crashed and exploded. I recall strafing the large stacks of 55 gallon drums containing high octane aviation gas stacked along the south side the runway at Phonsaven in the fall of 1969 when I was a Wolf FAC.
In 1994, a Lao witness identified a possible crash site associated with that of Major East. A joint U.S./Lao Recovery Team excavated the site later that year and found aircraft wreckage, pilot-related items, and human bone fragments. His remains were identified through DNA testing on July 28, 1997 by the U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii.
Major James B. East Jr. was a native of Oklahoma City Oklahoma. He graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelor of science degree. He was survived by his wife, Fritzie, and their three children - Jamie Sue, Kevin Kay, and Kip Dale. He was a member of Northridge Park Baptist Church in San Antonio Texas where he served as a Deacon.
During the three years that he was a member of Northridge Park, he made numerous contributions to the life of the church. He served as Vice-Chairman of the Deacon Body, chairman of the Youth committee, Director of the Church Bond Program, choir member, and as the Superintendent of Adult Sunday School Department. The countless ways in which he led and the served the church were far more than could be enumerated. He was truly a faithful and dedicated servant of the Lord.
Jay entered the United States Air Force in November, 1956 after graduation from college. He was stationed at various bases including; Malden AFB, Missouri, Robbins AFB, Georgia, Webb AFB, Texas, Clark AB, Philippines, Vance AFB, Oklahoma, and Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. At Randolph AFB he served as an instructor Pilot in T-38's and T-33s. He received orders to Nakhon Phanom, Thailand in late 1968. He received training in A-1 aircraft at Hurlburt field Florida and then proceeded to Thailand in February of 1969. On April 26, 1969 Major East's aircraft was struck by enemy ground fire over Laos. His wing man reported that his aircraft was struck in the wing and went down. No parachute was seen and his aircraft exploded on impact. At that time he was listed as missing in action. Later ground troops were able to reach the area and recovered his pistol and confirmed that the pilot would have been wearing the pistol and therefore is presumed dead. The pistol that was recovered suffered severe damage in that the barrel was bent about 20 degrees off its normal position. Major East was confirmed dead on June 21, 1969. His family was notified and a memorial service was held at the Randolph Air Force Base Chapel Number One at 2:30 pm on July 20, 1969, which was concluded with a missing man fly by.
August 24, 1997
Oklahoma Aviator Killed In Vietnam Is Laid to Rest
SAN ANTONIO (AP) - An Air Force pilot from Oklahoma who was shot down over Laos during a covert special operations mission during the Vietnam War 28 years ago has finally been laid to rest.
Air Force Major James B. East Jr., a father of three who was 35 at the time of his death, was buried Friday at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery.
East was listed as missing in action and later as killed in action in 1969.
His remains were recovered in 1994 after a Laotian citizen reported finding a possible crash site, and a recovery team excavated the site,finding the wreckage, pilot-related items and human bone fragments.
The remains were identified through DNA testing and returned to the United States in 1994.
East is survived by his wife, Fritzy Parham of Austin; a son, Kip East of Clovis, New Mexico; and two daughters, Jamie East of Oklahoma City and Kevin East of Austin.
Additional memorials can be seen at the Virtual Wall and at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On June 7, 1912 the following was received from Paul E. Griffin:
My name is Paul Griffin, and I have always lived in Ft. Worth, TX. I knew James Boyd East Jr. in grade school in the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th. grades (1942-1945). My family and his family went to the same neighborhood Baptist church. I remember his parents, and his brother, Bobby (William R.). In that time frame and in those school years, we knew him as J.B. East (although I knew it stood for James Boyd). He was simply called J.B. His father, James Boyd East, Sr., had a career in insurance and had some part time position at the Baptist church. His mother, Cora Virginia Jones East, was involved in school activities. In those days, I always liked J.B. and considered him a very good friend. We (in a little group of boys & girls) did many things together.
Since I never left Ft. Worth, I still see some of those people at a monthly luncheon that we attend. There were school activities that we shared. One was being in a grade school chorus and the music teacher, Miss Colquitt, would set up the chorus singing at various places around Ft. Worth...other schools, the Woman's Club, and even on a local radio station. The mothers would take us in little groups in their cars. I always liked to ride in Mrs. East's group as on the way back to school, she would stop and buy us each a soda pop at a gas station.
In the 7th grade, I was disappointed to learn that J.B.'s family was leaving and moving to Oklahoma City. Time went on, and I graduated high school in June, 1952. I always wondered what happened to J.B. East. No one had kept up with him, and we did not know.
In the time frame of 1959/1960 a funny thing happened. A married couple I knew often had small parties. Once at their house, I met a couple, Donna & Jimmy Vaughan. In talking, I found that Donna had grown up in Oklahoma City. I asked her if she had ever known a family named "East". Yes, she told me,....the J.B. East's had lived down the street, and she had dated J.B. Jr. Donna got their family address from her mother, and I wrote a letter to J.B. in care of his parents' address. Soon, I got a reply as J.B. Jr. was now in the Air Force, stationed in Hawaii. He sent me a Christmas card photo of him, his wife, Fritzie, and 2 children and a note asking about other people we had known in school. We exchanged Christmas cards for two or three years, and then I lost track of them again.
Through the years, I wondered what became of them. I knew his parents names, and with the magic of the computer, I found when and where they had each died. It was only about a year ago, I attempted and found Mrs. Cora East's obituary in the Oklahoma City paper. It was there in her story. Bobby was now an M.D. in west Texas, and it told of what had happened to J.B. Jr. His story was something out of a tragic but fascinating novel. Then I discovered that just by typing in "Major James Boyd East Jr." on the computer, the rest of his story appeared. It was sad to learn that he died at age 35, and not too many years after we had lost touch. Thanks to you or someone for telling his story, and we learned the rest of the story.
This week, our high school class of 1952 had a 60 year reunion, and I informed the 5 or 6 people who remembered J.B. about what became of him. Most of us are now in the 77--78 age group. Out of a class of 150 people, 52 are known to be deceased, and of course there are some that we never located and do not know about.
Sincerely,
Paul E. Griffin
James Boyd 'Jay' East Jr. was a native of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelor of science degree.
He was a T-38A 'Talon' Instructor Pilot assigned to the 3575th Pilot Training Wing, 3575th Pilot Training Squadron, Flight 1, 'Skid Row' at Vance Air Force Base, Enid, Oklahoma in 1965.
Jay and his fellow instructors, in 'Skid Row' flight, instructed many of my classmates in Class 65-F.
He then attended A-1 training at Hurlburt Field, Florida (Eglin, Air Force Auxiliary #9). He was assigned to the 4407th Combat Crew Training Squadron, in Class 69-05.
In February 1969, he was assigned to the 602nd Special Operations Squadron, 56th Special Operations Wing stationed at Nankon Phanom, Thailand where he flew A-1J 'Skyraider aka 'Spad' aircraft. The nickname 'Spad' stood for "Single Place Attack, Douglas". Here is the web page for the 602nd SOS. The 602nd SOS flew strike missions with the call sign of 'Firefly' and Search and Rescue (SAR) missions using the call sign 'Sandy''. The motto of the SAR forces in South East Asia was "That Others May Live".
On April 26, 1969, Major East was on a strike mission attacking an enemy mortar position near Phonsaven on the Plains de Jar (PDJ) in Laos when his A-1J Skyraider was struck by enemy ground fire. The aircraft crashed and exploded. I recall strafing the large stacks of 55 gallon drums containing high octane aviation gas stacked along the south side the runway at Phonsaven in the fall of 1969 when I was a Wolf FAC.
In 1994, a Lao witness identified a possible crash site associated with that of Major East. A joint U.S./Lao Recovery Team excavated the site later that year and found aircraft wreckage, pilot-related items, and human bone fragments. His remains were identified through DNA testing on July 28, 1997 by the U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii.
Major James B. East Jr. was a native of Oklahoma City Oklahoma. He graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelor of science degree. He was survived by his wife, Fritzie, and their three children - Jamie Sue, Kevin Kay, and Kip Dale. He was a member of Northridge Park Baptist Church in San Antonio Texas where he served as a Deacon.
During the three years that he was a member of Northridge Park, he made numerous contributions to the life of the church. He served as Vice-Chairman of the Deacon Body, chairman of the Youth committee, Director of the Church Bond Program, choir member, and as the Superintendent of Adult Sunday School Department. The countless ways in which he led and the served the church were far more than could be enumerated. He was truly a faithful and dedicated servant of the Lord.
Jay entered the United States Air Force in November, 1956 after graduation from college. He was stationed at various bases including; Malden AFB, Missouri, Robbins AFB, Georgia, Webb AFB, Texas, Clark AB, Philippines, Vance AFB, Oklahoma, and Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. At Randolph AFB he served as an instructor Pilot in T-38's and T-33s. He received orders to Nakhon Phanom, Thailand in late 1968. He received training in A-1 aircraft at Hurlburt field Florida and then proceeded to Thailand in February of 1969. On April 26, 1969 Major East's aircraft was struck by enemy ground fire over Laos. His wing man reported that his aircraft was struck in the wing and went down. No parachute was seen and his aircraft exploded on impact. At that time he was listed as missing in action. Later ground troops were able to reach the area and recovered his pistol and confirmed that the pilot would have been wearing the pistol and therefore is presumed dead. The pistol that was recovered suffered severe damage in that the barrel was bent about 20 degrees off its normal position. Major East was confirmed dead on June 21, 1969. His family was notified and a memorial service was held at the Randolph Air Force Base Chapel Number One at 2:30 pm on July 20, 1969, which was concluded with a missing man fly by.
August 24, 1997
Oklahoma Aviator Killed In Vietnam Is Laid to Rest
SAN ANTONIO (AP) - An Air Force pilot from Oklahoma who was shot down over Laos during a covert special operations mission during the Vietnam War 28 years ago has finally been laid to rest.
Air Force Major James B. East Jr., a father of three who was 35 at the time of his death, was buried Friday at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery.
East was listed as missing in action and later as killed in action in 1969.
His remains were recovered in 1994 after a Laotian citizen reported finding a possible crash site, and a recovery team excavated the site,finding the wreckage, pilot-related items and human bone fragments.
The remains were identified through DNA testing and returned to the United States in 1994.
East is survived by his wife, Fritzy Parham of Austin; a son, Kip East of Clovis, New Mexico; and two daughters, Jamie East of Oklahoma City and Kevin East of Austin.
Additional memorials can be seen at the Virtual Wall and at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On June 7, 1912 the following was received from Paul E. Griffin:
My name is Paul Griffin, and I have always lived in Ft. Worth, TX. I knew James Boyd East Jr. in grade school in the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th. grades (1942-1945). My family and his family went to the same neighborhood Baptist church. I remember his parents, and his brother, Bobby (William R.). In that time frame and in those school years, we knew him as J.B. East (although I knew it stood for James Boyd). He was simply called J.B. His father, James Boyd East, Sr., had a career in insurance and had some part time position at the Baptist church. His mother, Cora Virginia Jones East, was involved in school activities. In those days, I always liked J.B. and considered him a very good friend. We (in a little group of boys & girls) did many things together.
Since I never left Ft. Worth, I still see some of those people at a monthly luncheon that we attend. There were school activities that we shared. One was being in a grade school chorus and the music teacher, Miss Colquitt, would set up the chorus singing at various places around Ft. Worth...other schools, the Woman's Club, and even on a local radio station. The mothers would take us in little groups in their cars. I always liked to ride in Mrs. East's group as on the way back to school, she would stop and buy us each a soda pop at a gas station.
In the 7th grade, I was disappointed to learn that J.B.'s family was leaving and moving to Oklahoma City. Time went on, and I graduated high school in June, 1952. I always wondered what happened to J.B. East. No one had kept up with him, and we did not know.
In the time frame of 1959/1960 a funny thing happened. A married couple I knew often had small parties. Once at their house, I met a couple, Donna & Jimmy Vaughan. In talking, I found that Donna had grown up in Oklahoma City. I asked her if she had ever known a family named "East". Yes, she told me,....the J.B. East's had lived down the street, and she had dated J.B. Jr. Donna got their family address from her mother, and I wrote a letter to J.B. in care of his parents' address. Soon, I got a reply as J.B. Jr. was now in the Air Force, stationed in Hawaii. He sent me a Christmas card photo of him, his wife, Fritzie, and 2 children and a note asking about other people we had known in school. We exchanged Christmas cards for two or three years, and then I lost track of them again.
Through the years, I wondered what became of them. I knew his parents names, and with the magic of the computer, I found when and where they had each died. It was only about a year ago, I attempted and found Mrs. Cora East's obituary in the Oklahoma City paper. It was there in her story. Bobby was now an M.D. in west Texas, and it told of what had happened to J.B. Jr. His story was something out of a tragic but fascinating novel. Then I discovered that just by typing in "Major James Boyd East Jr." on the computer, the rest of his story appeared. It was sad to learn that he died at age 35, and not too many years after we had lost touch. Thanks to you or someone for telling his story, and we learned the rest of the story.
This week, our high school class of 1952 had a 60 year reunion, and I informed the 5 or 6 people who remembered J.B. about what became of him. Most of us are now in the 77--78 age group. Out of a class of 150 people, 52 are known to be deceased, and of course there are some that we never located and do not know about.
Sincerely,
Paul E. Griffin
He was a T-38A 'Talon' Instructor Pilot assigned to the 3575th Pilot Training Wing, 3575th Pilot Training Squadron, Flight 1, 'Skid Row' at Vance Air Force Base, Enid, Oklahoma in 1965.
Jay and his fellow instructors, in 'Skid Row' flight, instructed many of my classmates in Class 65-F.
He then attended A-1 training at Hurlburt Field, Florida (Eglin, Air Force Auxiliary #9). He was assigned to the 4407th Combat Crew Training Squadron, in Class 69-05.
In February 1969, he was assigned to the 602nd Special Operations Squadron, 56th Special Operations Wing stationed at Nankon Phanom, Thailand where he flew A-1J 'Skyraider aka 'Spad' aircraft. The nickname 'Spad' stood for "Single Place Attack, Douglas". Here is the web page for the 602nd SOS. The 602nd SOS flew strike missions with the call sign of 'Firefly' and Search and Rescue (SAR) missions using the call sign 'Sandy''. The motto of the SAR forces in South East Asia was "That Others May Live".
On April 26, 1969, Major East was on a strike mission attacking an enemy mortar position near Phonsaven on the Plains de Jar (PDJ) in Laos when his A-1J Skyraider was struck by enemy ground fire. The aircraft crashed and exploded. I recall strafing the large stacks of 55 gallon drums containing high octane aviation gas stacked along the south side the runway at Phonsaven in the fall of 1969 when I was a Wolf FAC.
In 1994, a Lao witness identified a possible crash site associated with that of Major East. A joint U.S./Lao Recovery Team excavated the site later that year and found aircraft wreckage, pilot-related items, and human bone fragments. His remains were identified through DNA testing on July 28, 1997 by the U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii.
Major James B. East Jr. was a native of Oklahoma City Oklahoma. He graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelor of science degree. He was survived by his wife, Fritzie, and their three children - Jamie Sue, Kevin Kay, and Kip Dale. He was a member of Northridge Park Baptist Church in San Antonio Texas where he served as a Deacon.
During the three years that he was a member of Northridge Park, he made numerous contributions to the life of the church. He served as Vice-Chairman of the Deacon Body, chairman of the Youth committee, Director of the Church Bond Program, choir member, and as the Superintendent of Adult Sunday School Department. The countless ways in which he led and the served the church were far more than could be enumerated. He was truly a faithful and dedicated servant of the Lord.
Jay entered the United States Air Force in November, 1956 after graduation from college. He was stationed at various bases including; Malden AFB, Missouri, Robbins AFB, Georgia, Webb AFB, Texas, Clark AB, Philippines, Vance AFB, Oklahoma, and Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. At Randolph AFB he served as an instructor Pilot in T-38's and T-33s. He received orders to Nakhon Phanom, Thailand in late 1968. He received training in A-1 aircraft at Hurlburt field Florida and then proceeded to Thailand in February of 1969. On April 26, 1969 Major East's aircraft was struck by enemy ground fire over Laos. His wing man reported that his aircraft was struck in the wing and went down. No parachute was seen and his aircraft exploded on impact. At that time he was listed as missing in action. Later ground troops were able to reach the area and recovered his pistol and confirmed that the pilot would have been wearing the pistol and therefore is presumed dead. The pistol that was recovered suffered severe damage in that the barrel was bent about 20 degrees off its normal position. Major East was confirmed dead on June 21, 1969. His family was notified and a memorial service was held at the Randolph Air Force Base Chapel Number One at 2:30 pm on July 20, 1969, which was concluded with a missing man fly by.
August 24, 1997
Oklahoma Aviator Killed In Vietnam Is Laid to Rest
SAN ANTONIO (AP) - An Air Force pilot from Oklahoma who was shot down over Laos during a covert special operations mission during the Vietnam War 28 years ago has finally been laid to rest.
Air Force Major James B. East Jr., a father of three who was 35 at the time of his death, was buried Friday at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery.
East was listed as missing in action and later as killed in action in 1969.
His remains were recovered in 1994 after a Laotian citizen reported finding a possible crash site, and a recovery team excavated the site,finding the wreckage, pilot-related items and human bone fragments.
The remains were identified through DNA testing and returned to the United States in 1994.
East is survived by his wife, Fritzy Parham of Austin; a son, Kip East of Clovis, New Mexico; and two daughters, Jamie East of Oklahoma City and Kevin East of Austin.
Additional memorials can be seen at the Virtual Wall and at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On June 7, 1912 the following was received from Paul E. Griffin:
My name is Paul Griffin, and I have always lived in Ft. Worth, TX. I knew James Boyd East Jr. in grade school in the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th. grades (1942-1945). My family and his family went to the same neighborhood Baptist church. I remember his parents, and his brother, Bobby (William R.). In that time frame and in those school years, we knew him as J.B. East (although I knew it stood for James Boyd). He was simply called J.B. His father, James Boyd East, Sr., had a career in insurance and had some part time position at the Baptist church. His mother, Cora Virginia Jones East, was involved in school activities. In those days, I always liked J.B. and considered him a very good friend. We (in a little group of boys & girls) did many things together.
Since I never left Ft. Worth, I still see some of those people at a monthly luncheon that we attend. There were school activities that we shared. One was being in a grade school chorus and the music teacher, Miss Colquitt, would set up the chorus singing at various places around Ft. Worth...other schools, the Woman's Club, and even on a local radio station. The mothers would take us in little groups in their cars. I always liked to ride in Mrs. East's group as on the way back to school, she would stop and buy us each a soda pop at a gas station.
In the 7th grade, I was disappointed to learn that J.B.'s family was leaving and moving to Oklahoma City. Time went on, and I graduated high school in June, 1952. I always wondered what happened to J.B. East. No one had kept up with him, and we did not know.
In the time frame of 1959/1960 a funny thing happened. A married couple I knew often had small parties. Once at their house, I met a couple, Donna & Jimmy Vaughan. In talking, I found that Donna had grown up in Oklahoma City. I asked her if she had ever known a family named "East". Yes, she told me,....the J.B. East's had lived down the street, and she had dated J.B. Jr. Donna got their family address from her mother, and I wrote a letter to J.B. in care of his parents' address. Soon, I got a reply as J.B. Jr. was now in the Air Force, stationed in Hawaii. He sent me a Christmas card photo of him, his wife, Fritzie, and 2 children and a note asking about other people we had known in school. We exchanged Christmas cards for two or three years, and then I lost track of them again.
Through the years, I wondered what became of them. I knew his parents names, and with the magic of the computer, I found when and where they had each died. It was only about a year ago, I attempted and found Mrs. Cora East's obituary in the Oklahoma City paper. It was there in her story. Bobby was now an M.D. in west Texas, and it told of what had happened to J.B. Jr. His story was something out of a tragic but fascinating novel. Then I discovered that just by typing in "Major James Boyd East Jr." on the computer, the rest of his story appeared. It was sad to learn that he died at age 35, and not too many years after we had lost touch. Thanks to you or someone for telling his story, and we learned the rest of the story.
This week, our high school class of 1952 had a 60 year reunion, and I informed the 5 or 6 people who remembered J.B. about what became of him. Most of us are now in the 77--78 age group. Out of a class of 150 people, 52 are known to be deceased, and of course there are some that we never located and do not know about.
Sincerely,
Paul E. Griffin
Inscription
James B / East / Maj USAF / Vietnam / Nov 18 1933 / Apr 26, 1969 / KIA PH / Reached out and / touched / the face of God
