Navy Misawa remembers ‘Deep Sea 129’ tragedy

MISAWA AIR BASE, AOMORI, JAPAN

04.15.2015

Courtesy Story

Naval Air Facility Misawa

Story by Lt. Scott Childers

MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan - Sailors stationed at Misawa Air Base, Japan, conducted a remembrance ceremony April 15 marking the 46th anniversary of the U.S. Navy EC-121 aircraft that was shot down over the Sea of Japan April 15, 1969.

Thirty-one service members were lost aboard the Lockheed EC-121 Warning Star as it disappeared off radar at 1:47 p.m. after being shot down by North Korean MiG-17 aircraft during a routine reconnaissance mission.

Their aircraft was assigned to Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron One (VQ-1) and departed Naval Air Facility Atsugi, Japan, on that fateful day.

Misawa-based Sailors have conducted an annual memorial ceremony in honor of those lost ever since the tragedy.

"Their mission, whose call sign was 'Deep Sea 129,’ was referred to as intelligence gathering. ... Two-hundred of these flights were executed without incident in just the first three months of 1969, the acknowledged risk to the aircraft and crew was minimal. However, that mission was never completed, the aircraft was never recovered, 30 Sailors and one Marine never saw home base again," said Lt. Scott Childers, assigned to CTF-72, from Loveland, Colorado, who coordinated this year's event.

Lt. Cmdr. James Overstreet, the mission’s commander, received word six hours into the mission that two North Korean MiGs were en route to intercept their flight. Despite all efforts, the slower propeller-driven aircraft was unable to evade the MiGs and the EC-121 was shot down over international waters.

"This ceremony was a bit informal compared to years previous, but it is important to continue on with this tradition because events like this are fundamentally important to why we do what we do," said Childers. "They help us remember our predecessors, the sacrifices they made, and more importantly, they remind us of the awesome responsibility that we have assumed from those before us. I take this personally and am honored to participate in this."

At the closing of the ceremony, the names of the fallen were read aloud.

As part of the ceremony's tradition, all members concluded the ceremony by taking a ceremonial bouquet to Misawa Beach, where it was laid out to sea as a tribute to the fallen.

As the bouquet was slowly pulled out to sea, the Misawa Sailors took a moment of silence to remember the fallen.

"The crew members of Deep Sea 129 will not be forgotten. Their dedication to our country and their ongoing mission is something we still celebrate today," said Childers. "With every mission flown by VQ-1, and indeed every other reconnaissance mission flown by U.S. aircraft in the Navy, Army and Air Force, the mission, memory and dedication of the 31 men of Deep Sea 129 lives on.”

• Date Taken: 04.15.2015
• Date Posted: 04.23.2015 21:25
• Story ID: 161078
• Location: MISAWA AIR BASE, AOMORI, JP
• Hometown: LOVELAND, CO, US