Aircraft Downed During the Cold War and Thereafter
Last revised: November 8 2005
29 August 1945 Soviet pilot Zizevskii, flying a Yak-9 Frank, damaged a US Army Air Force B-29 Superfortress dropping supplies to a POW camp near Hamhung Korea and forced it to land. The crew of the B-29 was not injured in the attack.
2-16 September 1945 Soviet fighters fired on US Navy 7th Fleet air patrols in Manchurian airspace.
15 November 1945 While on a routine patrol mission, a US Navy PBM-5 Mariner was attacked by a Soviet Fighter 25 miles south of Dairen (Port Arthur) Manchuria. No damage was inflicted. The PBM-5 was investigating six Soviet transport ships and a beached seaplane in the Gulf of Chihli in the Yellow Sea. Some sources state that this happened on October 15th, not November 15th.
1946 Zelijko Cermelj, flying a Yak-3 of the Yugoslav Air Force forced down a Royal Air Force Dakota transport flying over Southern Yugoslavia, near Nis.
20 February 1946 While on a training flight, a US Navy PBM-5 Mariner from VP-26, based in Tsingtao China, made an unauthorized flight over Dairen (Port Arthur) Manchuria. As a result, Soviet fighters fired warning bursts at it, but no damage was inflicted.
22 April 1946 A US Army Air Force C-47 was shot at near Vienna Austria, but managed to escape.
9 August 1946 Dragomir Zecevic, flying a Yak-3 of the Yugoslav Air Force shot down a US Army Air Force C-47A (43-15376) transport over Northern Yugoslavia (Slovenia). Onboard were four American crewmembers (including William Crombie, the pilot) and four passengers - three Americans, two Hungarians, and one Turkish officer. Everybody on board survived and were soon released by the Yugoslavian authorities. The Turkish officer was badly wounded in the incident was released after everybody else.
19 August 1946 Vladimir Vodopivec, flying a Yak-3 of the Yugoslav Air Force shot down a US Army Air Force C-47 transport over Northern Yugoslavia (Slovenia). The crew of Harold Schreiber, Glen Freestone, Richard Claeys, Matthew Comko and Chester L. Lower were all killed.
1 or 2 December 1946 A US Army Air Force A-26 Invader piloted by George A. Curry of the US Army Air Force 45th Reconnaissance Squadron, Furth, Germany, became lost in heavy, unfavorable weather while on a mission to Amsterdam, Netherlands, and eventually landed near the village of Egyek, northeast of Budapest, Hungary. The other crewman on board was Donald G. Gelnett. The landed safely and the aircraft was flyable, but very low on fuel. The local townspeople welcomed the Americans. Soviet Air Force officers questioned the crew and were satisfied once Curry let them develop the on-board film and they saw nothing of consequence (he had kept his classified maps and town plans hidden). On 6 December an American officer arrived from Budapest with enough fuel to get the A-26 out of the field, and on the 7th they flew over to the regular Budapest airfield. After an adequate refueling there, but hampered by weather delays, the crew and aircraft returned to their home base on 12 December via Vienna, Austria.
21 February 1947 A US Air Force B-29 Superfortress (45-21768), Kee Bird, of the 46th Reconnaissance Squadron, crash landed on a frozen lake in northern Greenland after having gotten lost in the Arctic, while on a reconnaissance mission. The airplane had departed Ladd Field Alaska the day before. The crew of eleven, Howard R. Adams, Vernon H. Arnett, Burl Cowan, Talbert M. Gates, Russell S. Jordan, Robert Leader, John G. Lesman, Robert L. Luedke, Paul R. McNamara, Ernest C. Stewart and Lawrence L. Yarbrough, spent three days on the frozen lake, enduring temperatures of less than 50 degrees below zero, before being rescued by a USAF C-54. In 1994 an effort was begun by Darryl Greenamyer to recover the aircraft. In May 1995 he and his team had the aircraft ready for flight. Moving the aircraft under its own power on May 22 1995, the fuel supply for the APU spilled onto the APU, starting a fire that destroyed the aircraft.
24 February 1947 A US Air Force B-29 Superfortress, of the 28th BS disappeared, over the Bering Sea. The crew of twelve were presumed dead.
29 December 1947 A US Marine Corps plane crashed in China and the four man crew was captured by Communist forces. They were released in July 1948.
19 October 1948 A US Navy plane crashed near Tsingtao China. Two crew members are held prisoner by the Communists for 19 months.
9 February 1948 Two Turkish Supermarine Spitfires entered Bulgarian airspace at low altitude. They were shot down by small arms fire, fired by Bulgarian border guards. One crashed in the Black Sea and the pilot was killed. The other crashed 3km south of the Sozopolaresort and the pilot, Taliat Yunki Yud, was captured. He was later returned to Turkey.
5 April 1948 A British European Airways Vickers Viking 1B (G-AIVP) circling Gatow airfield, Berlin, in preparation for landing, collided head-on with a Soviet Yak-3 fighter, which was performing aerobatics. The Soviet pilot and all 14 on board the Viking were killed.
27 October 1948 A Italian Air Force P-38 Lightning (MM4175) was shot down over Yugoslavia.
1949 Soviet pilots claimed to have downed a US Air Force B-25 Mitchell over the Black Sea, near Odessa.
22 January 1949 A US Air Force AT-6 was shot down over Greece by Communist guerrillas. The pilot, Seldon Edner was killed.
19 February 1949 A US observation plane was shot down near Kaesong Korea by North Korean forces. The pilot was wounded in the attack.
22 October 1949 An US Air Force RB-29 Superfortress was attacked by Soviet fighters over the Sea of Japan. There were no injuries to the RB-29's crew.
14 March 1950 A Republic of China Air Force F-10 (07) (a photo reconnaissance B-25 Mitchell) was shot down by a People's Republic of China PLAAF aircraft and the crew of six was killed.
16 March 1950 A Republic of China Air Force P-51 Mustang was shot down by a People's Republic of China PLAAF ground fire and the pilot was killed.
2 April 1950 A Republic of China Air Force P-51 Mustang was shot down by downed by Soviet aircraft stationed in Shanghai and the pilot was killed.
8 April 1950 Soviet La-11 Fangs, piloted by Boris Dokin, Anatoliy Gerasimov, Tezyaev, and Sataev shot down a US Navy PB4Y-2 Privateer (BuNo 59645) Turbulent Turtle of VP-26, Det A. Based from Port Lyautey, French Morrocco, the Privateer was on a patrol mission launched from Wiesbaden, West Germany. According the to the American account, this incident happened over the Baltic Sea off the coast of Lepija Latvia. The Soviets claimed the aircraft was intercepted over Latvia and fired on the Soviet fighters during the interception. After the fighters engaged the Privateer, the Soviets report that it descended sharply before crashing into the sea 5-10 kilometers off the coast. Wreckage was recovered, but the crew of John H. Fette, Howard W. Seeschaf, Robert D. Reynolds, Tommy L. Burgess, Frank L. Beckman, Joe H. Danens, Jack W. Thomas, Joesph Jay Bourassa, Edward J. Purcell and Joesph Norris Rinnier Jr. were missing and presumed killed.
24 April 1950 Soviet pilot Keleinikov claimed to have downed a US Air Force P-38 Lightning (F-82 Twin Mustang?).
April 1950 Soviet pilot P. Dushin claimed to have shot down a US Air Force B-26 Invader.
April 1950 Soviet pilot V. Sidorov claimed to have shot down a US Air Force B-26 Invader.
April 1950 Soviet pilot Nikolai N. Guzhov claimed to have shot down two US Air Force F-51 Mustangs.
May 1950 Soviet pilot V.S. Yefremov, flying a La-11 Fang, claimed to have shot down a US Air Force F-51 Mustang over the Chukotka Peninsula.
11 May 1950 Soviet pilot I.I. Shinkarenko claimed to have downed a US Air Force B-24 Liberator (PB4Y Privateer?).
17 May 1950 A Royal Air Force Shorts Sunderland was forced to land at Lod airport in Israel after being intercepted by Spitfires of the 105 Squadron of the Israel Air Force over Ramat David air base. The RAF crew had been issued maps that didn't show Israel and were unaware that they were flying over a sovereign state, as Great Britain had yet to recognize the state of Israel.
13 June 1950 A flight of Israel Air Force Spitfires, from the 101 Squadron, forced down a Jordanian Arab Airways DeHavilland Dragon Rapide after the aircraft attempted to fly across the Negev without permission. The aircraft was seized.
14 July 1950 A US Air Force RB-29 was shot at near Permskoye airfield in the USSR, but escaped.
24 July 1950 A Lebanese Compagnie Generale des Transports DC-3 was attacked by Israel Air Force Spitfires after it inadvertently crossed into Israeli airspace. The aircraft landed safely in Beirut, but three passengers were killed.
29 July 1950 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (126) was shot down by People's Republic of China ground fire over Xiamen and the pilot was killed.
9 August 1950 Soviet pilot Kursonov shot down a People's Republic of China PLAAF Tu-2 Bat that he mistook for a B-25 Mitchell, after it had strayed over a restricted area near Shanghai.
4 September 1950 A US Navy F4U-4B Corsair of VF-53, piloted
by Ensign Edward V. Laney, shot down a Soviet Naval Aviation Douglas
A-20 Box over the Yellow Sea, southeast of the Soviet-occupied Port
Arthur Naval Base in China and west of the North Korean coast. Laney
was one of a four-ship Combat Air Patrol from the carrier USS Valley Forge
(part of Task Force 77), which was protecting US Navy air activity against
North Korea not long before the Inchon landings. The A-20 was one
of two belonging to the Port Arthur-based 36th Mine-Torpedo Aviation Regiment
of the Red Banner Pacific Fleet, apparently sent out on an armed reconnaissance
mission. A-20s had been supplied in quantity to the Soviets
on Lend-Lease during World War 2, and this unit had had extensive experience
during the war as torpedo bombers . The Corsairs encountered the two
A-20s about 40 nautical miles from the Chinese coast. One A-20 turned
back, but the other pressed on. As the Corsairs descended, the top
turret gunner on the A-20 was observed to open fire. Richard E. Downs
led Laney on a firing pass, and Laney hit the A-20 with his 20mm cannon.
The Soviet aircraft then crashed into the sea. The US recovered the
body of one Soviet crewman, later identified as that of Genaddiy Mishin,
the copilot. The other two bodies, those of Senior Lt. Karpol, the
aircraft commander, and Sgt. A. Makaganov, the gunner, were never found.
Mishin's body was returned to the Soviets in 1956.
October-December 1950 A US Navy P2V Neptune of VP-6, piloted by Arthur Farwell, was intercepted at night by four Soviet MiG-15 Fagots, near Vladivostok. The Neptune's tail gunner opened fire and one MiG exploded.
6 November 1950 A US Navy bomber with twelve crew members on board was reported to have failed to return from a combat patrol over the Strait of Formosa. Its fate was never learned.
4 December 1950 Soviet MiG-15 Fagots shot down an RB-45C Tornado of the US Air Force 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, 45 miles east of Andung People's Republic of China (just across the Yalu River from Sinuiju North Korea). Soviet pilot Aleksandr F. Andrianov received credit for shooting down the aircraft. Co-pilot Jules E. Young and navigator James L. Picucci were killed in the crash. Pilot Charles E. McDonough and passenger John R. Lovell bailed out and landed south of the Yalu River. McDonough was badly burned when he landed on the Tornado's wreckage. Both were captured the next day by the North Koreans. McDonough was murdered during an interrogation by North Korean and Soviet officers two weeks later. Lovell survived brutal interrogation sessions, but was finally taken into a North Korean village, where the residents were encouraged to lynch him.
26 December 1950 Two Soviet MiG-15 Fagots, flown by S.A. Bakhev and N. Kotov shared in the downing of a US Air Force RB-29 Superfortress.
4 July 1951 A US Air Force RB-45C Tornado of the 323rd Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, based in Yokota Japan, conducted a night overflight 500 miles into Manchuria. The crew of Stacy D. Naftel, Edward Kendrex and Bob Dusenberry reported that they were attacked by MiG-15 Fagots while approaching their target in Harbin People's Republic of China. They managed to escaped damage by outrunning the intercepting fighters.
13 October 1951 An Italian Air Force P-38L Lightning (MM4203) was shot down over Yugoslavia.
6 November 1951 While conducting an intelligence gathering mission, later claimed to be a "weather reconnaissance mission under United Nations command", a US Navy P2V-3W Neptune (BuNo 124283 - not 124284 as listed in some sources) of VP-6 was shot down over the Sea of Japan, near Vladivostok, by Soviet La-11 Fangs flown by I. Ya. Lukashyev and M.K. Shchukin. The Soviet pilots reported that they intercepted the aircraft in the area of Cape Ostrovnoy approximately 7-8 miles from the shore. After they fired on the aircraft, it fell, burning, into the water and exploded 18 miles from the shore. The crew of Judd C. Hodgson, Sam Rosenfeld, Donald E. Smith, Reuben S. Baggett, Paul R. Foster, Erwin D. Raglin, Paul G. Juric, William S. Meyer, Ralph A. Wigert Jr. and Jack Lively were reported as missing.
8 November 1951 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (335) failed to return from a reconnaissance mission over Guandong, People's Republic of China.
18 November 1951 A US Air Force C-47 transport, with a crew of four, flying from Munich to Belgrade, became lost over Yugoslavia and entered Hungarian and then Romanian airspace. It was fired on by Hungarian and Romanian border guards and finally forced down by a MiG-15 Fagot piloted by Kalugin, near the Yugoslav frontier. One crew member, John J. Swift survived and was released shortly thereafter by the Romanians.
4 April 1952 A US Navy patrol bomber was damaged by gunfire from an unidentified trawler one hundred mile southeast of Shanghai People's Republic of China. On one was hurt and the plane returned safely to Taiwan.
29 April 1952 A DC-4 of Air France was shot at by two MiG-15 Fagots when approaching Berlin. The aircraft was damaged and three passengers wounded.
13 June 1952 A US Air Force RB-29 Superfortress (44-61810) of the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, based in Yokota Japan, was shot down by Soviet fighters over the Sea of Japan, 18 miles from the Soviet coast, near Hokkaido. Soviet MiG-15 Fagot pilots Fedotov and Proskurin reported intercepting the aircraft in the area of Valentin Bay, nine miles from the Soviet coastline. They reported that the RB-29 fired on the Soviet fighters, when intercepted. The Soviet pilots returned fire and the US plane descended, burst into flames and crashed into the water at a distance of about 18 miles from our coastline. Official US records state that the aircraft was on a classified surveillance mission of shipping activity over the Sea of Japan. The plane was followed by radar over the course of the flight until 1320 hours at which time the radar contact was lost. Empty life rafts were spotted by search aircraft the next day. Radio Moscow stated on June 16 stated that one officer survivor had been picked up by a Russian vessel about two days before. The name of the survivor was not given and efforts to confirm the report were unsuccessful. The crew of Sam Busch, Robert J. McDonnell, Roscoe G. Becker, Eddie R. Berg, Leon F. Bonura, William R. Homer, Samuel D. Service, James A. Sculley, William A. Blizzard, Miguel W. Monserrat , Danny Pillsbury and David L. Moore were all listed as missing, presumed dead.
13 June 1952 Soviet MiG-15 Fagot pilot Captain Boris Osinsky, of the 483rd Fighter Aviation Regiment, shot down a Swedish SIGINT C-47 (Tp79 79001 Hugin) piloted by Alvar Almeberg, over the Baltic, near Ventspils Latvia. Everybody on board the C-47 was killed - the only wreckage found at the time was a life raft. The C-47 was one of two, (the other being 79002 Munin, both named after Odin's ravens), together with a Ju 86 called Blondie, which supposedly belonged to the so called 6 Transportflyggruppen at F 8, which at that time had a staff of twelve. In reality they were used for SIGINT duties, the C-47s fitted out with five operator stations, the operators belonging to FRA (Försvarets Radioanstalt = the Radio Establishment of the Defense). In June 2003, Swedish searchers found the wreckage of the C-47 on the bottom of the Baltic in international waters near Gotska Sandoen island, about 120 kilometers (75 miles) east of the Swedish coastline. The wreckage was raised during the night of March 19/20 2004 and returned to Sweden.
16 June 1952 Soviet pilots N. Semernikov and I. Yatsenko-Kosenko shared in the downing of a Swedish PBY Catalina (Tp 47 47002) outside the island of Dagö. The PBY was looking for survivors of the Swedish SIGINT C-47 lost on June 13th. After taking hits in the fuselage and the engines the PBY was forced to land on the water with two of the crew of seven injured. The crew was rescued by a German merchant ship.
31 July 1952 While conducting a patrol mission, a US Navy PBM-5S2 Mariner (BuNo 59277), of VP-731, based from Iwakuni Japan, was attacked by two People's Republic of China MiG-15 Fagots over the Yellow Sea. Two crew members were killed and two were seriously wounded. The PBM suffered extensive damage, but was able to make it safely to Paengyong-do Korea.
20 September 1952 A US Navy PB4Y-2S Privateer, of VP-28, was attacked by two Chinese MiG-15 Fagots off the coast of the People's Republic of China. One of the PLAAF pilots was Zhongdao He. The USN aircraft was able to safely return to Naha, Okinawa.
7 October 1952 A US Air Force RB-29 Superfortress Sunbonnet King (44-61815) of the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron was shot down over the Kurile Islands, between Yuri Island and Akiyuri Island, by two Soviet La-11 Fang fighters, flown by Alekseyevich Zhiryakov and Lesnov. The crew of eight, Eugene M. English, John R. Dunham, Paul E. Brock, Samuel A. Colgan, John A Hirsch, Thomas G. Shipp, Fred G. Kendrick and Frank E. Neail III, were all listed as missing, presumed dead. Soviet search and rescue units recovered the body of one crewman, John R. Dunham. His remains were initially buried on Yuri Island in the Kurile chain, but were returned to the US in the 1994.
8 October 1952 A US Air Force C-47 was fired on near Berlin Germany.
15 October 1952 A B-47 photo reconnaissance flight, authorized by President Truman and staged out of Eielson AFB, was flown over the Chukotsky Peninsula. It confirmed that the Soviets were developing Arctic staging bases on the peninsula from which their bombers could easily reach targets on the North American continent.
23 November 1952 A US Navy PB4Y-2S Privateer, of VP-28, was attacked, but not damaged, by a Chinese MiG-15 Fagot off of Shanghai People's Republic of China.
29 November 1952 A Civil Air Transport C-47 flying from Seoul South Korea, on a mission to pick up agent Li Chun-ying, was shot down in Jilin province, People's Republic of China. CAT pilots Robert Snoddy and Norman Schwartz were killed. CIA agents Richard Fectau and John Downey were captured and held in China until December 12, 1971 and March 12, 1973, respectively. In July 2002, the Chinese government allowed a US government team to search for Snoddy and Schwartz's bodies. This expedition brought back sufficient airplane remains to prompt a more in-depth archaeological dig in July 2004.
12 January 1953 A US Air Force B-29 Superfortress on a leaflet-dropping mission over Manchuria was shot down by a swarm of 12 enemy fighters. The plane was assigned to the 581st Air Resupply and Communications Wing and carried a crew of 14. After the attack, B-29 aircraft commander, John K. Arnold, ordered the crew to bail out. Unfortunately, three men died during the attack, but the other 11 parachuted to the ground, were captured and taken to China for interrogation and imprisonment. These men were not released until 1956.
18 January 1953 A US Navy P2V-5 Neptune (BuNo 127744) of VP-22, based at Atsugi Japan, was damaged by Chinese anti-aircraft fire near Swatow People's Republic of China, but was able to ditch in the Formosa Strait. Eleven of thirteen crewmen were rescued by a US Coast Guard PBM-5 Mariner, under fire from Chinese shore batteries on Nan Ao Tao island. Attempting to takeoff in 8-12 foot swells, the PBM crashed. Ten survivors out of nineteen total (including five from the P2V-5) were rescued by the destroyer USS Halsey Powell (DD 686). During the search effort a PBM-5 Mariner from VP-40 received fire from a small-caliber machine gun and the destroyer USS Gregory (DD 802) received fire from Chinese shore batteries. Dwight C. Angell, Ronald A. Beahm, Paul A. Morley, William F. McClure, Lloyd Smith and Clifford Byars were the P2V-5 crewmen reported lost.
6 March 1953 People's Republic of China PLAAF pilot Yaxiong He claimed to have shot down a US Navy F4U Corsair at Qianlidao in Qingdao.
10 March 1953 Two US Air Force F-84G Thunderjets of the 36 TFW, based in West Germany, crossed into Czechoslovakian airspace. They were intercepted by Czech MiG-15 Fagots and one F-84G was shot down by Jaroslav Sramek. The pilot ejected and survived.
12 March 1953 Seven airmen are killed when the Royal Air Force Avro Lincoln Mk2 (RF531/C) they were flying in, was shot down by a Soviet MiG-15 Fagot in the Berlin air corridor, near Boizenberg, 20 miles NE of Luneburg. The aircraft, from the RAF Central Gunnery School at Leconfield in Yorkshire, was on a training flight. Among the crew members were H.J. Fitz, S.V. Wyles, W.R. Mason, R.F. Stevens and K.J. Jones.
14 March 1953 The pilot of a Soviet An-2 Colt, flying from East Germany, became lost and landed in a small field near Irmelshausen West Germany. The pilot realized where he was and took off and returned to East Germany before West German border police arrived to question him.
15 March 1953 A US Air Force WB-50 Superfortress reconnaissance plane of the 38th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing was attacked by a pair of Soviet MiG-15 Fagots approximately 25 miles off the Kamchatka Peninsula, near Petropavlovsk. The WB-50 based at Forbes Air Force Base, Kansas, was temporarily operating from Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, while assigned to the 15th WRS. After escorting the WB-50 for a short time, one Soviet pilot opened fire on the WB-50. WB-50 gunner Jesse Prim returned fire and the MiG pilot quickly broke off his attack and returned to his base.
17 March 1953 A British European Airways Viking was shot at by Soviet MiG-15 Fagots near Berlin Germany.
22 March 1953 A US Air Force B-50 was attacked by Soviet MiG-15 Fagots.
23 April 1953 A US Navy P4M-1Q Mercator (BuNo 124369) piloted by Dick Renner and Mel Davidow, was attacked by two MiG-15 Fagots while flying off the Chinese coast near Shanghai. The MiGs made a several firing runs and the crew of the Mercator returned fire. The Mercator was not hit, and as far as the crew of the Mercator could tell, their return fire did not damage the MiGs. William Haskins, the radioman on this Mercator, was later killed in the downing of another Mercator on August 22 1956.
15 May 1953 A Soviet MiG-15 Fagot opened fire on a US Air Force WB-29 Superfortress off the Kamchatka Peninsula. The WB-29's gunners returned fire. There were no casualties.
16 June 1953 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (335) was shot down by People's Republic of China ground fire over Dongshan Island and the pilot was killed.
19 June 1953 A US Navy PBM-5S2 Mariner from VP-46 was fired on by People's Republic of China surface ships in the Formosa Strait. No damage was inflicted.
28 June 1953 A US Navy P2V-5 Neptune of VP-1 was fired on by People's Republic of China surface ships in the Formosa Strait. No damage was inflicted.
8 July 1953 A US Navy P2V-5 Neptune of VP-1 was fired on by antiaircraft artillery near Nantien People's Republic of China. No damage was inflicted.
21 July 1953 Two Chinese MiGs damaged a US Navy PBM-5 Mariner in an attack that took place over the Yellow Sea.
27 July 1953 An Aeroflot Il-12 Coach was shot down by US Air Force F-86F Sabre pilot Ralph Parr, near Kanggye, North Korea, shortly before the armistice went into effect. All 21 people on board were killed. The Soviets claimed that the aircraft was actually over the People's Republic of China when shot down.
29 July 1953 An US Air Force RB-50G Superfortress (47-145) Little Red Ass of the 343rd Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, temporarily attached to the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron based at Yokota Air Base, Japan, was shot down south of Askold Island near Vladivostok, by Soviet pilots Aleksandr D. Rybakov and Yuri M. Yablonskii, flying MiG-17 Frescos. The RB-50's tail gunner James E. Woods was able to fire a brief burst at the MiG-17s, but the fighters were able to avoid this fire and quickly downed the plane, shooting its left wing off. The co-pilot of the RB-50, John E. Roche, was the sole survivor of the 18 man crew, though as many as seven crew members might have successfully bailed out. After spending about 12 hours in the water, an SB-29 dropped an A-3 survival raft to Roche and the RB-50's pilot, Stanley K. O'Kelley. Roche was able to crawl into the survival raft, but O'Kelley succumbed to hypothermia. After another 10 hours in the survival raft, Roche was rescued by the USS Picking (DD 685). The remains of Stanley K. O'Kelley and Francis L. Brown were later recovered on the coast of Japan. The other crew, James G. Keith, Francisco J. Tejeda, Warren J. Sanderson, Robert E. Stalnaker, Lloyd C. Wiggins, Roland E. Goulet, Earl W. Radlein Jr., Charles J. Russell Jr., James E. Woods, John C. Ward, Edmund J. Czyz, Frank E. Beyer, Donald W. Gabree, Donald G. Hill and an unnamed Russian, were never found.
August 1953 A Royal Air Force Canberra, a modified B Mk.2, suffered damage during a reconnaissance flight over the Kapustin Yar missile base in the USSR. The aircraft aborted its mission and landed in Iran.
17 August 1953 A T-6 was shot down over the Korean demilitarized zone by North Korean ground fire. One crew member was killed and one survived.
2 October 1953 A US Navy PBM-5 Mariner of VP-50 was intercepted by two People's Republic of China MiG-15 Fagots 30 miles east of Tsingtao. The MiGs made twelve firing passes, but only hit the PBM twice in the tail with 37mm cannon shells. The crew was not injured and the aircraft returned safely to base.
7 November 1953 People's Republic of China PLAAF pilot Xicai Lin claimed to have shot down a US Navy PBM-5A Mariner at Qianlidao in Qingdao. This might have been BuNo 58152, reported lost over the Yellow Sea on November 10th with a crew of 14.
18 November 1953 A US Navy PBM-5 Mariner (BuNo 84747) of VP-50 picked up an unexpected tail wind while approaching Shanghai. The airplane got close to the coast of the People's Republic of China before the crew determined their position. After the aircraft turned away from the coast, it was jumped by 2 MiG-15 Fagots. Three firing passes were made but the PBM wasn't hit.
17 December 1953 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (193) was shot down by People's Republic of China ground fire over Jejiang and the pilot was killed.
4 January 1954 A US Navy P2V-5 Neptune (BuNo 127752) of VP-2 departed NAS Iwakuni in Japan and headed toward the west coast of Korea. The flight continued north across the Korean DMZ, then along the North Korean coast to the coast of China before turning south. After reporting engine difficulties, the aircraft head towards the K-13 base at Suwan. The engine difficulties might have been a result of a hostile attack on the Neptune. The aircraft reached the vicinity of K-13 before crashing, possibly the result of an additional attack by a US Navy AD-4B Skyraider on night patrol. The crew of Jesse Beasley, Fredric Prael, Rex Claussen, Gordon Spicklemier, Lloyd Rensink, Bruce Berger, James Hand, Robert Archbold, Stanley Mulford and Paul Morelli were all killed.
27 January 1954 A US Air Force RB-45 Tornado flying over the Yellow Sea with an escort of F-86 Sabres was attacked by eight MiG-15 Fagots. One MiG was shot down by USAF pilot Bertram Beecroft.
9 February 1954 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (267) was shot down by People's Republic of China ground fire and the pilot was killed.
10 March 1954 Zdenek Voleman of the Czech Air Force shot down a twin engine airplane.
18 March 1954 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (219) was shot down by a People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-15 Fagot and the pilot was killed.
21 March 1954 Two US Navy AD-4 Skyraiders, from VA-145 and VC-35 Det F, lauched from the USS Randolph (CVA 15) launched on a simulated strike mission against a West German airfield. They were attacked over or near the Czechoslovak border by a Czech MiG-15 Fagot. One AD-4 received damage to its tail.
29 April 1954 A RB-45C Tornado operated by the Royal Air Force narrowly escaped being was shot down by antiaircraft fire near Kiev. The mission was aborted.
9 April 1954: A US Navy P2V Neptune from VP-2 was attacked by a Chinese MiG-15 Fagot while on patrol over the Yellow Sea. The MiG made three firing passes and the crew of the Neptune returned fire. There was no apparent damage to either aircraft resulting from the encounter.
6 May 1954 One of a flight of six Civil Air Transport C-119 Flying Boxcars, flown by CIA pilots James B. Earthquake McGoon McGovern and Wallace A. Buford was hit twice by ground fire as it was about to drop ammunition to beleaguered French Foreign Legion troops at Diên Biên Phu Vietnam. The plane (tail number 149) staggered 75 miles southward into Laos and crashed near the Nam Het River. Besides the pilots, their were four French servicemen on board, Bataille, Rescouriou, Moussa and Jean Arlaux. Moussa and Jean Arlaux survived the crash, but Moussa died of his injuries several days later. Jean Arlaux was captured by Pathet Lao forces and finally released on October 13, 1954. Excavation at the crash site in December 2002 yielded the remains of one of the crew members.
8 May 1954 Three US Air Force RB-47E Stratojet reconnaissance planes took off from RAF Fairford in England. Two of the Stratojets flew as airborne spares and turned back before the overflight began. The remaining plane penetrated Soviet airspace near Murmansk. The plane flew over numerous Soviet air fields and naval facilities conducting photographic reconnaissance and making radar scope images of the various facilities. The RB-47E continued to Arkhangelsk before turning west and heading back to England. The USAF plane was intercepted by MiG fighters after being over Soviet territory for about 50 miles. Initially, MiG-15 Fagots were spotted, but a short time later a flight of MiG-17 Frescos appeared. The operational deployment of the MiG-17 was a significant surprise to the crew of the RB-47. When the MiG-17s climbed to approximately the same altitude as the reconnaissance plane (38,000 feet) they opened fire. The Soviet fighters each made single shooting passes at the USAF plane. The RB-47 was equipped with a tail gun controlled by the copilot and returned fire but did not hit any of the Soviet planes. One MiG was able to hit the Stratojet with several rounds and caused moderate damage to the wing and fuselage. Before the MiGs were able to shoot down the USAF plane, it crossed the border into Finland and the MiGs broke off the attack. However, during the attack the RB-47's fuel tanks were hit and the plane nearly ran out of fuel before it was met by a Boeing KC-97 tanker for in-flight refueling. The RB-47E landed safely in England a short time later.
11 May 1954 Two Republic of China Air Force P-47 Thunderbolts engaged two PLAAF MiG-15 Fagots and claimed one as damaged.
8 May 1954 A US Air Force RB-47 Stratojet of the 51st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing flying a photo reconnaissance mission over the Northern USSR exchanged gunfire with MiG-17 Frescos. The RB-47 was lightly damaged, but the crew of Hal Austin, Carl Holt and Vance Heavilin got home safely.
22 May 1954 In combat with Six People's Republic of China PLAAF aircraft, Republic of China Air Force pilots Chien and Yen, flying P-47 Thunderbolts, shared in the downing of a MiG-15 Fagot.
26 May 1954 A Republic of China Air Force B-17 was shot down by ground fire near Fujian People's Republic of China. The four crew members were killed.
3 June 1954 A Belgian transport aircraft was shot at by MiGs over Yugoslavia and one crew member was killed.
3 June 1954 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (222) was shot down by a People's Republic of China PLAAF La-11 Fang and the pilot was killed.
6 July 1954 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (313) was shot down by a People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-15 Fagot and the pilot was killed.
22 July 1954 A Cathay Pacific Airways DC-4 (VR-HEU) on a flight from Bangkok Thailand to Hong Kong, was shot down by People's Republic of China La-9 Fritz fighters near Hainan island, China. Of the 18 people on board (including 6 Americans), 10 were killed and 8 survived.
26 July 1954 Two US Navy AD-4 Skyraiders from VF-54, piloted by William Alexander and John Zarious,were launched from the USS Philippine Sea (CVA 47) to look for survivors from the Cathay Pacific DC-4 shot down four days previously. They were attacked by two Chinese La-7 Fins. A number of other VF-54 AD-4 Skyraiders and a F4U-5N Corsair of VC-3 came to the aid of the USN aircraft. One La-7 was shot down by AD-4 pilots Roy Tatham and Richard Cooks. The other LA-7 was shot down by AD-4 pilots John Damien, John Rochford, Paul Wahlstrom and Richard Ribble and the F4U-5N pilot Edgar Salsig. A Chinese gunboat also fired upon the US aircraft, but no damage was sustained.
12 August 1954 Two US training planes were shot down over Czechoslovakia. The pilots were captured and held for several months.
4 September 1954 A US Navy P2V-5 of VP-19, operating from NAS Atsugi Japan was attacked 40 miles off the coast of Siberia by two Soviet MiG-15 Fagots. The aircraft ditched and one crew member, Roger H. Reid was lost. The other crew members, John B. Wayne, John C. Fischer, William A. Bedard, Frank E. Petty, Anthony P. Granera, Texas R. Stone, Paul R. Mulmollem, Ernest L. Pinkevich and David A. Atwell were rescued by a US Air Force SA-16 amphibian.
4 September 1954 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (369) crashed while on a bombing mission in Kinmen, People's Republic of China. The pilot was killed.
9 September 1954 Bulgarian fighter pilot Ilia Elensky intercept and fired upon an unknown intruder, at night. The plane he fired upon crashed in Greek territory. There was no official Greek comment on this, but Greek newspapers published memorials for dead pilots, without connecting their deaths to a specific event.
12 September 1954 A Republic of China Air Force PB4Y (12) was shot down by ground fire near Xiamen, People's Republic of China. The crew of nine were killed.
15 October 1954 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (227) failed to return from a mission over the People's Republic of China.
7 November 1954 A US Air Force RB-29 Superfortress reconnaissance aircraft was shot down by Soviet fighters, flown by Kostin and Seberyakov, near Hokkaido Island in northern Japan. The plane carrying a crew of eleven was conducting routine photographic reconnaissance near Hokkaido and the southern most of the disputed Kuril islands. The plane was attacked and seriously damaged, forcing the crew to bail out. Ten crewmen were successfully rescued after landing in the sea; however, the eleventh man drowned when he became entangled in his parachute lines after landing.
1 November 1954 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (380) crashed while on a bombing mission in Fujian, People's Republic of China. The pilot was killed.
17 November 1954 A Republic of China Air Force RT-33A (2) crashed into mountains in Fujian, People's Republic of China while evading a PLAAF MiG-15 Fagot. The pilot was killed.
December 1954 Israel Air Force Meteors forced a Syrian DC-3 to land at Lod airport in Israel after it intruded into Israel's airspace.
19 January 1955 A US Army L-20 Beaver was shot down by North Korean fire over the Korean demilitarized zone and the crew of two were killed.
19 January 1955 A Republic of China Air Force F-84G Thunderjet (315) was shot down by People's Republic of China ground fire and the pilot was killed.
21 January 1955 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (209) was shot down by People's Republic of China ground fire and the pilot was killed.
5 February 1955 A US Air Force RB-45 Tornado of the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron was attacked over the Yellow Sea, 40 miles W of Pyongyang, by two North Korean or Chinese MiG-15 Fagots. An air battle involving eight USAF F-86 Sabres and twelve MiG-15s followed. Two MiGs were shot down by USAF F-86 Sabres flown by Charles Salmon and George Williams, who were escorting the RB-45.
9 February 1955 While flying an antisubmarine patrol mission from the USS Wasp (CVA 18), a AD-5W Skyraider of VC-11 Det H sustained damage from Chinese antiaircraft artillery. The AD-5W was covering the evacuation of Chinese Nationalists from the Tachen islands. The aircraft ditched and the three man crew was rescued by Nationalist Chinese patrol boats.
February 1955 A US Navy P2V sustained wing damage after it was fired upon by People's Republic of China antiaircraft artillery, while over the Formosa Strait.
20 February 1955 A Republic of China Air Force P-47N Thunderbolt (142) was shot down by People's Republic of China ground fire and the pilot was killed.
17 April 1955 Soviet MiG-15 Fagot pilots Korotkov and Sazhin shared in the downing of a US Air Force RB-47E Stratojet of the 4th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, flying from Eielson AFB, near Kamchatka. The crew of Lacie C. Neighbors, Robert N. Brooks and Richard E. Watkins Jr. were all presumed killed.
10 May 1955 Eight US Air Force F-86 Sabres were attacked by twelve People's Republic of China PLAAF MiGs off the Korean coast. One F-86 Sabre was claimed to be shot down by PLAAF pilot Xizhong Ni at Dagushan in Liaoning. USAF pilots Robert Fulton and Burt Phythyon claimed to have each shot down a PLAAF MiG-15 Fagot on the same day, 50 miles SW of Sinuiju.
22 June 1955 A Republic of China Air Force RT-33A (7) was shot down over Jiangxi by a People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-17 Fresco. The RT-33A's one crew member was killed.
22 June 1955 A US Navy P2V-5 Neptune of VP-9 (BuNo 131515), flying a patrol mission from Kodiak Alaska, was attacked over the Bering Strait by two Soviet MiG-15 Fagots. The aircraft crash-landed on St. Lawrence Island after an engine was set afire. Of the eleven crew members, including pilot Richard F. Fischer, co-pilot David M. Lockhard, Donald E. Sonnek, Thaddeus Maziarz, Martin E. Berg, Eddie Benko, David Assard and Charles Shields, four sustained injuries due to gunfire and six were injured during the landing. The USA demanded $724,947 in compensation; the USSR finally paid half this amount.
4 July 1955 Four Republic of China Air Force F-84G Thunderjet engaged four People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-15 Fagots, downing one.
16 July 1955 A Republic of China Air Force F-84G Thunderjet (118) was shot down by People's Republic of China ground fire near Kinmen, killing the pilot.
27 July 1955 An El Al Airlines Lockheed 049 Constellation (4X-AKC), flight 426, flying from London to Tel Aviv, via Vienna and Istanbul, strayed into Bulgarian airspace, likely due to strong winds in very bad weather. The aircraft was being flown by Pilot Stanley Hinks, First Officer Pini Ben-Porat, Flight Engineer Sidney Chalmers and Radio Operator Raphael Goldman. The aircraft was intercepted in early morning darkness at 17,500 feet by Bulgarian MiG-15 Fagot fighters, flown by Boris Vasilev Petrov and Konstantin Krumov Sankiyski, and was shot down near Petrich, Bulgaria. The aircraft crashed near the Strumitza River, close to the Yugolsav and Greek borders in southwestern Bulgaria. All fifty-one passengers and seven crew members aboard were killed, including six American nationals.
18 August 1955 A US Air Force LT-6 utility/training aircraft was shot down by North Korean ground fire after the aircraft inadvertently overflew the DMZ into North Korea. The pilot was wounded and the observer was killed. The body of the observer and the pilot were returned by the North Koreans on August 23, 1955.
15 October 1955 Republic of China Air Force F-86 Sabre pilot Tzu-Wan Sun shot down a People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-15 Fagot.
7 November 1955 An An-2 Colt carrying Polish UN observers along the Korean DMZ was shot down by South Korea.
14 April 1956 One MiG-15 Fagot was claimed when four Republic of China Air Force F-84G Thunderjets engaged four MiG-15 of the People's Republic of China PLAAF.
22 June 1956 People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-17 Fresco pilot Minh Lu shot down a Republic of China Air Force B-17 during a nighttime interception. The B-17's crew of eleven was killed.
20 July 1956 One MiG-15 Fagot was claimed when four Republic of China Air Force F-84G Thunderjets engaged four MiG-15 of the People's Republic of China PLAAF.
21 July 1956 Four Republic of China Air Force F-84G Thunderjets engaged three MiG-15 Fagots of the People's Republic of China PLAAF. RoCAF pilot Ouyangi-Fang claimed two victories.
21 July 1956 Republic of China Air Force pilot I-Fang Ouyang claimed two MiG-15 Fagots as shot down when four RoCAF F-86 Sabres engaged three MiG-15 of the People's Republic of China PLAAF.
22 August 1956 While on a patrol mission from Iwakuni Japan, a US Navy P4M-1Q Mercator of VQ-1 (BuNo 124362) disappeared after a nighttime attack by People's Republic of China PLAAF pilot Zhongwen Song, 32 miles off the coast of Wenchow China and 180 miles north of Formosa. There were no survivors of the 16 crew members. The bodies of two crew members, James Ponsford and Albert Mattin, and some wreckage were recovered by the USS Dennis J. Buckley (DDR 808). The bodies of two other crew members, Jack Curtis and William Haskins, were recovered by the Chinese and returned to the US. The remains of the other crew members, Donald Barber,Warren Caron, James Deane, Francis Flood, William Humbert, Milton Hutchinson, Harold Lounsbury, Carl Messinger, Wallace Powell, Donald Sprinkle, Leonard Strykowsky and Lloyd Young, were never found.
10 September 1956 A US Air Force RB-50G Superfortress was lost over the Sea of Japan. The crew of 16, Lorin C. Disbrow, Raymond D. Johnson, Rodger A. Fees, Paul W. Swinehart, William J. McLauglin, Theodorus J. Trias, Pat P. Taylor, John E. Beisty, Peter J. Rahaniotes, William H. Ellis, Richard T. Kobayashi, Wayne J. Fair, Palmer D. Arrowood, Harry S. Maxwell Jr., Bobby R. Davis and Leo J. Sloan, were all presumed to be killed. It is suspected that the aircraft was lost due to a powerful storm, Typhoon Emma, which was in the area.
4 October 1956 People's Republic of China PLAAF pilot Zhao De An shot down a Republic of China Air Force F-84 over Shantou.
10 November 1956 A Republic of China Air Force C-46 Commando was shot down over Jejigxi by a People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-19, while on an airdrop, killing the crew of nine.
15 April 1957 A Republic of China Air Force RF-84F Thunderflash crashed while being pursued by a People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG, killing the pilot.
12 June 1957 Four US Navy AD-6 Skyraiders from VA-145 launched from the USS Hornet (CVA 12) and overflew the coast of the People's Republic of China. They encountered antiaircraft fire and one aircraft sustained slight damage.
1 July 1957 A Republic of China Air Force P-47 (699) was shot down People's Republic of China ground fire and the pilot was killed.
5 November 1957 A Republic of China Air Force B-26 Invader was shot down over the People's Republic of China and the crew of three was captured. The crew was released eight months later.
11 November 1957 Mystere IVA fighters of the 101 Squadron of the Israel Air Force intercepted a Jordanian C-47 inside Israeli airspace and forced it to land.
23 December 1957 A T-33, with one crew member on board, was lost over Albania.
24 December 1957 A US Air Force RB-57 was shot down over the Black Sea by Soviet fighters.
18 February 1958 An RB-57D (5642) operated by the Republic of China Air Force was shot down over Shandong, People's Republic of China by a People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force MiG-15 Fagot. The pilot was killed.
6 March 1958 A US Air Force F-86 Sabre fighter was shot down by AAA fire over North Korea when it accidentally flew across the DMZ into North Korea. The pilot bailed out and was returned uninjured by North Korea.
18 May 1958 Indonesian Air Force (Angatan Udara Republik Indonesia or AURI) F-51D Mustang pilot Ignatius Dewanto shot down a Civil Air Transport B-26B Invader (44-35221) that had already been damaged by anti-aircraft fire. The B-26 had just bombed the Ambon Island airstrip in the Moluccas, in support of a revolt in Sulawesi aimed at overthrowing the President Sukarno. The CIA pilot, Allen Pope and his navigator Harry Rantung, were captured by Indonesian forces. Pope was held captive for nineteen months before being brought to trial in a military court. He was accused of six bombing raids that killed twenty-three Indonesians, including seventeen members of the Indonesian armed forces. Pope was found to be guilty and sentenced to death. The death penalty was not carried out and he was released in 1962.
17 June 1958 A Republic of China Air Force RF-84F Thunderflash (5609) crashed near Fujian People's Republic of China while being pursued by PLAAF MiG-15bis Fagots, killing the pilot.
27 June 1958 A US Air Force C-118, reportedly on a regular supply flight from Wiesbaden West Germany to Karachi Pakistan, via Cyprus and Iran, crossed the Soviet border near Yerevan Armenia. Soviet MiG-17P Fresco pilots G.F. Svetlichnikov and B.F. Zakharov shot the aircraft down 30 km south of Yerevan. Five crew members parachuted to safety and four other survived the crash landing on a half-finished airstrip. The crew of Dale D. Brannon, Luther W. Lyles, Robert E. Crans, Bennie A. Shupe, James T. Kane, James N. Luther, James G. Holman, Earl H. Reamer and Peter N. Sabo were captured and later released by the Soviets on July 7, 1958. This aircraft was reported to be the personal aircraft of Allen Dulles, then director of the Central Intelligence Agency. The C-118 had carried senior CIA aides to Europe on an inspection trip, and it was in Turkey when it was diverted.
26 July 1958 A US Air Force RB-47, flying from Iran, was intercepted by Soviet fighters over the Caspian Sea 130 miles east-southeast of Astara. The RB-47 evaded the fighters and fled to safety.
29 July 1958 Four F-84G Thunderjets from the Republic of China Air Force 1st Wing in Tainnan were on patrol near Nan Ao Island when four People's Republic of China PLAAF 54th Regiment Mig-17 Frescos attacked. PLAAF pilots Gao ChangJi and Zhang YiLing were credited with each shooting down a F-84. PLAAF pilot Zhao De An claimed a kill, but this was not substantiated.
14 August 1958 Republic of China Air Force F-86F Sabre pilots Ping-Chun Chin and Chung-Li Li each shot down a People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-17 Fresco. Hsien-Wu Liu shared a MiG-17 with Fu-The Pan. One F-86F (307) failed to return from this engagement.
25 August 1958 Republic of China Air Force F-86 Sabre pilots Tien-En Chiang and Hsu-Hsiang Ku each shot down a People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-17 Fresco.
2 September 1958 A US Air Force C-130A Hercules (60-528) of the 7406 CSS, flying from Adana Turkey, was shot down near Sasnashen, Soviet Armenia, about 55 kilometers northwest of the Armenian capital of Yerevan by Soviet MiG-17 Fresco pilots Gavrilov, Ivanov, Kucheryaev and Viktor Lopatkov. The C-130 was a Sun Valley SIGINT aircraft. The remains of John E. Simpson, Rudy J. Swiestra, Edward J. Jeruss and Ricardo M. Vallareal were returned to the US on September 24, 1958. The remains of the other crew members, Paul E. Duncan, George P. Petrochilos, Arthur L. Mello, Leroy Price, Robert J. Oshinskie, Archie T. Bourg Jr., James E. Fergueson, Joel H. Fields, Harold T. Kamps, Gerald C. Maggiacomo, Clement O. Mankins, Gerald H. Medeiros and Robert H. Moore were recovered in 1998.
8 September 1958 Republic of China Air Force F-86 Sabre pilots Ping-Chun Chin, Yi-Chien Li, Chin-Chung Liang, Chung-Tsi Yu and Wai-Ming Chu each shot down a People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-17 Fresco, while Hsien-Wu Liu shot down two MiG-17s. PLAAF pilot Zhang Yi Lin shot down an F-86.
18 September 1958 Republic of China Air Force F-86 Sabre pilots Wan-Li Lin, Yang-Chung Lu, Che-Shing Mao, Tzu-Wan Sun, Kuang-Hsing Tung and Hsin-Yeh Liu each shot down a People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-17 Fresco over Haicheng in Guangdong Province. PLAAF pilot Chang Zhu You shot down an F-86.
24 September 1958 Republic of China Air Force F-86 Sabre pilots Jing-Chuen Chen, Chun-Hsein Fu, Jie-Tsu Hsia, Shu-Yuen Li, Ta-Peng Ma, Hong-Yan Sung and Yi-Chiang Chien each shot down one People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-17 Fresco, except Chien, who shot down two. Tasi-Chuen Liu shared a MiG-17 with Tang Jie-Min and Hsin-Yung Wang shared a MiG-17 with Yuen-Po Wang. In this air battle, one of the AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles fired by the F-86s hit a MiG-17, but its warhead did not explode. The MiG-17 recovered safely to its base and the missile was safely extracted. The missile was delivered to the Soviet Union and from there was sent to the Toropov engineering office to be copied. The end product of this process being the K-13 (AA-2 Atoll), long the most prolific Soviet air-to-air missile.
29 September 1958 Three crewmen were killed and two were captured when a Republic of China Air Force C-46 Commando was shot down over the People's Republic of China. The captured crewmembers were released on June 30th, 1959.
2 October 1958 Five crewmen were killed when a Republic of China Air Force C-46 Commando (199) was shot down by ground fire over Kinmen, People's Republic of China.
10 October 1958 Republic of China Air Force F-86F Sabre pilots Nai-Chun Chang, Teng-Chung Ting, Chuan-Hsu Yeh and Cheng Lu each shot down a People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-17 Fresco. One F-86F was damaged by debris from an exploding MiG-17. The pilot bailed out and was taken captive. He was released on June 30th, 1959.
19 October 1958 Israel Air Force fighters attempted to force down a Jordanian DC-3 airliner that the Israelis claimed was flying over Wadi Ramon, in the Negev. The fighters crossed into Jordanian airspace and possibly Saudi airspace, but the Jordanian airliner escaped.
31 October 1958 A US Air Force RB-47 Stratojet was attacked by Soviet fighters over the Black Sea. The crew of three were not injured and the aircraft returned safely to base.
7 November 1958 A US Air Force RB-47 Stratojet was attacked by Soviet fighters, east of Gotland Island over the Baltic Sea. The crew of three were not injured and the aircraft returned safely to base.
17 November 1958 A US Air Force RB-47 Stratojet was attacked over the Sea of Japan by Soviet fighters. The crew of three were not injured and the aircraft returned safely to base.
6 April 1959 Vautours of the Israel Air Force intercepted an unidentified airliner.
27 May 1959 Mystere IVA fighters of the 109 Squadron of the Israel Air Force, piloted by Yosef Tzuk and Ya'acov Yariv, intercepted a Lebanese Air Force Savio Marchetti SM.79 transport and forced it to land at Haifa, after it entered Israeli airspace.
29 May 1959 A Republic of China Air Force B-17 (835) was shot down by a PLAAF MiG-17PF Fresco piloted by Jiang Zhe Lun near Guandong People's Republic of China. The B-17's crew of fourteen was killed.
30 May 1959 A UN operated C-47 was intercepted by Mystere IVA fighters of the 109 Squadron of the Israel Air Force and forced to land at Lod airport in Israel.
16 June 1959 While flying a patrol mission over the Sea of Japan, a US Navy P4M-1Q of VQ-1 (BuNo 122209) was attacked 50 miles east of the Korean DMZ by two North Korean MiG-17 Frescos. During the attack, the aircraft sustained serious damage to the starboard engine and the tail gunner was seriously wounded. The aircraft made it safely back to Miho AFB Japan.
5 July 1959 Four Republic of China Air Force F-86 Sabres battled 24 People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-17 Frescos, over the Straits of Taiwan, claiming two.
9 September 1959 Super Mysteres of the Israel Air Force intercepted an Egyptian Vickers Viscount airliner.
7 October 1959 A Republic of China Air Force RB-57D (53-3978, 5643), flown by Wang Ying Chin, was shot down near Beijing People's Republic of China by a SA-2 Guideline missile. Chin was killed.
12 October 1959 Czechoslovak pilots Jaroslav Benes and Josef Faix, flying a MiG-17 Fresco and MiG-19 Farmer, respectively, forced an Italian F-84 to land.
19 November 1959 Mystere IVA fighters of the Israel Air Force intercepted a Lebanese DeHavilland Dragon Rapide inside Israeli airspace near Nahariya and forced it to land at Haifa.
16 February 1960 Four Republic of China Air Force F-86 Sabres engaged 20 PLAAF MiG-17 Frescos, over the Straits of Taiwan, claiming one as shot down.
25 March 1960 A Republic of China Air Force RB-69A was shot down at night over the People's Republic of China, enroute to South Korea. All thirteen crewmembers were killed.
1 May 1960 A CIA Lockheed U-2C (Article 360, 56-6693), flown by Francis Gary Powers from Peshawar Pakistan, was shot down by an SA-2 Guideline missile, near Sverdlovsk, USSR. Recent evidence says that Powers was shot down by the first of three missiles fired by a battery commanded by Mikhail Voronov. A Soviet MiG-19 Farmer pilot, Sergei Safronov, was shot down and killed by another SA-2 Guideline fired later in the incident. Powers bailed out and parachuted to safety. He was then taken captive and later tried in a Soviet court. After serving some time in prison, he was released, in exchange for Soviet spy Rudolf Abel on February 10th, 1962 in Berlin.
25 May 1960 A US Air Force C-47 was forced to land in East Germany by Soviet MiGs. The nine crew members were held captive until July 19th 1960.
1 July 1960 A US Air Force ERB-47H Stratojet (53-4281) of the 38th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, flying over the Barents Sea was downed by Soviet pilot Vasili Poliakov, flying a MiG-15 Fagot. Co-pilot Bruce Olmstead and navigator John McKone survived and were taken captive. The pilot, Bill Palm and ELINT operators Eugene Posa, Oscar Goforth and Dean Phillips were killed. Olmstead and McKone were released from Soviet captivity on January 25th, 1961. Bill Palm's remains were returned to the US on July 25, 1960. Eugene Posa's remains were recovered by the Soviets, but never returned to the US.
15 February 1961 A Republic of China Air Force PB4Y (423) was shot down by Burmese fighter aircraft, near the Thai-Burmese border, killing the crew of five. Two other crewmembers were taken prisoner. This aircraft was carrying supplies for Chinese Kuomintang forces fighting in northern Burma.
March 1961 During a overflight of the People's Republic of China by a Republic of China U-2, flown by Tai-Yow Wang, more than thirty Chinese fighters attempted unsuccesfully to intercept the U-2.
4 March 1961 Cuban pilot Rafael del Pino Diaz, flying a T-33, shot down a US Beechcraft AT-11.
17 April 1961 Cuban Hawker Sea Fury pilots Douglas Rudd Mole and Enrique Carreras Rojas and T-33 pilots Alvaro Prendes Quantana, Alberto Fernandez, Rafael del Pino Diaz, each shot down a CIA B-26C Invader operating in the Bay of Pigs invasion..
18 April 1961 Cuban T-33 pilot Alvaro Prendes Quantana shot down a CIA B-26C Invader operating in the Bay of Pigs invasion.
19 April 1961 Cuban T-33 pilots Alvaro Prendes Quantana and Enrique Carreras Rojas, each shot down a CIA B-26C Invader operating in the Bay of Pigs invasion.
20 April 1961 A US aircraft was fired on by North Korean aircraft. The pilot was killed when the aircraft crashed while attempting an emergency landing south of Seoul.
2 August 1961 A Republic of China Air Force RF-101A Voodoo was shot down by ground fire near Fukien People's Republic of China. The pilot Wu Paotze was captured.
4 August 1961 An Iran Air DC-4 (EP-ADK) returning to Tehran from a cargo flight to Beirut was attacked by Soviet fighters after it strayed into Soviet airspace. The aircraft sustained damage to the left wing and both outboard engines. The crew of three made a safe wheels-up landing on the southwest coast of the Caspian Sea.
6 November 1961 Thirteen crew members were killed when a Republic of China Air Force RB-69A was shot down by a SA-2 Guideline missile over Shantung province People's Republic of China.
5 December 1961 US Air Force F-102s out of Galena Alaska made the first intercept of a Soviet aircraft in Alaskan air space, a Soviet Tu-16 Badger.
1962 A Bulgarian MiG-17 reconnaissance airplane is reported to have crashed into an olive grove near one of the US Jupiter missile launch sites in Italy, after overflying the site.
March 1962 During a overflight of the People's Republic of China by a Republic of China U-2, flown by Tai-Yow Wang, a Chinese missile guidance radar locked on to the U-2. The pilot took evasive action and escaped without harm.
28 May 1962 In Operation Coldfeet, Maj. James Smith, USAF
and Lt. Leonard A. LeSchack, USNR parachuted from CIA B-17G N809Z (44-83785
c/n
32426) into the abandoned Soviet arctic ice station NP 8. After searching
the station, they were retrieved using a Fulton Skyhook system installed
on the B-17, piloted by Connie Seigrist and Douglas Price, on June 1st.
August 1962 A RF-101A Voodoo of the Republic of China Air Force was lost near Fukien, People's Republic of China.
1 August 1962 A Republic of China Air Force RB-69A was shot down over People's Republic of China, killing the crew of thirteen.
9 September 1962 A Republic of China Air Force U-2A (Article 378, 56-6711), flown by Chen Huai Sheng was shot down by a SA-2 Guideline missile over the People's Republic of China, 15 Km south of Nunchang. Sheng survived bailing out but died later in the hospital, after being captured.
24 September 1962 A US Air Force RB-47H, piloted by John Drost, was intercepted over the Baltic Sea by a Soviet MiG-19 Farmer.
27 October 1962 A US Air Force U-2A (Article 343, 56-6676) of the 4080th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, piloted by Rudolf Anderson, was shot down by a SA-2 Guideline missile over Cuba. Anderson was killed when shrapnel punctured his pressure suit, causing the suit to decompress at altitude, after the cockpit has already decompressed. He was posthumously awarded the Air Force Cross.
4 November 1962 A Russian-flown MiG-21 Fishbed intercepted two US Air Force F-104C Starfighters from the 479th Tactical Fighter Wing on a reconnaissance sortie near Santa Clara Cuba, but the F-104s disengaged and retired northward.
May 1963 Soviet MiG-17F Fresco pilot Steapnov, of the 156th IAP, shot down an Imperial Iranian Air Force Aerocommander 560. The IIAF crew members and a Colonel of the US Special Forces, were all killed.
17 May 1963 A US Army OH-23 Raven helicopter was shot down over the Korean demilitarized zone. The crew of two were captured and not returned until a year later.
14 June 1963 A Republic of China Air Force RB-69A was shot down near Nanchang People's Republic of China, killing the crew of fourteen. The aircraft was shot down by a PLAAF MiG-17PF Fresco.
19 July 1963 A Mirage IIICJ of the Israel Air Force 101 Squadron, piloted by Joe Aloni (Placek), forced a USAF RB-57 overflying Israel to land at Lod Airport. The RB-57 was released after the US government apologized for a "navigational error".
6 August 1963 A US Army "LT" was lost over North Korea.
1 November 1963 A Republic of China Air Force U-2C (Article 355, 56-6688), flown by "Robin" Yeh Chang Yi was shot down by a SA-2 Guideline missile over Jiagxi, People's Republic of China. The aircraft had been on a mission to photograph the Lanzhou nuclear weapons plant and the Jiayuguan missile test site. After overflying these sites, the aircraft was approaching the coast of China when it was shot down. After evading one missile, a second tore off the aircraft's right wing. Yeh survived and was released from captivity into Hong Kong on November 10, 1982. He was refused entry into the Republic of China and eventually was admitted to the United States.
20 November 1963 US Air Force U-2 (Article 350, 56-6683) crashed off the southwest coast of Florida while returning from Cuban overflight. Pilot Joe Hyde was killed.
20 November 1963 Soviet pilot V.P. Pavlovskii shot down an Iranian civilian L-26B.
24 January 1964 A US Air Force T-39 Sabreliner, based in Weisbaden West Germany, was shot down by a Soviet fighter over Thuringia, about 60 miles inside East Germany while on a training flight. The crew of three, Gerald Hannaford, John Lorraine and Donald Millard were killed.
10 March 1964 A US Air Force RB-66 Destroyer from the 10 TRW, based at Toul-Rosieres France, was shot down over East Germany by Soviet MiGs. The aircraft was shot down near Gardelegen, after straying out of one of the Berlin air corridors. The three crew members, David Holland, Melvin Kessler and Harold Welch parachuted to safety and were released several days later.
23 March 1964 Republic of China Air Force pilot Liang Teh Pei was killed when his U-2C (Article 356, 56-6689) came apart while over the Taiwan Straits.
11 June 1964 A Republic of China Air Force RB-69A was shot down near Yantai, Shantung Peninsula, killing the 14 crewmembers. This night time interception was made by a People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-17F Fresco, aided by an Iluyshin Il-28 Beagle, which dropped flares.
7 July 1964 A Republic of China Air Force U-2G (Article 362, 56-6695), flown by "Terry" Lee Nan Lee was shot down over Fujian, People's Republic of China by a SA-2 Guideline missile. Lee was killed.
15 July 1964 A Soviet Tu-16 Badger crashed in the Sea of Japan near the USS Bennington, USS Cunningham and USS Eversole.
August 1964 Soviet MiG-17F Fresco pilot Pechenkin, of the 156th IAP, shot down an Imperial Iranian Air Force Aerocommander 560.
14 November 1964 A US Air Force aircraft was attacked over the Korean DMZ.
27 November 1964 A Republic of China Air Force U-2C, flown by "Johnny" Wang Shichuen, narrowly avoided being shot down while photographing the Lanzhou nuclear weapons plant in the People's Republic of China. Several SA-2 Guideline missiles flew by so close to the aircraft that the pilot was temporarily blinded.
18 December 1964 A RF-101A Voodoo (5654) of the Republic of China Air Force was shot down by a PLANAF J-6 over Wenzhou in Zhejiang Province of the People's Republic of China. The pilot, Hsieh Hsiangho was taken captive by fishermen after bailing out over the ocean. He was released from captivity in July 1985.
1964-1965 A CIA operated P-3 Orion (149669, 149673 or 149678) is rumored to have shot down a MiG over the People's Republic of China with a AIM-9 Sidewinder missile. These three P-3s conducted low-level nocturnal intelligence gathering missions over the PRoC.
10 January 1965 A Republic of China Air Force U-2C (Article 358, 56-6691), flown by "Jack" Chang Liyi, was shot down over the People's Republic of China, southwest of Beijing by a SA-2 Guideline missile. The aircraft was on a mission to photograph the Paotow nuclear weapons plant. Chang survived and was released from captivity into Hong Kong on November 10, 1982. He was refused entry into the Republic of China and eventually was admitted to the United States.
March 1965 While flying over the People's Republic of China, Republic of China Air Force U-2 pilot "Charlie" Wu Tse Shi, was intercepted by a MiG-21 Fishbed in a zoom climb. The MiG fired two missiles which missed.
18 March 1965 A RF-101C Voodoo (5656) of the Republic of China Air Force was shot down near Shantou in Guangdong Province in the People's Republic of China by a PLAAF pilot Gao Chang Ji, flying a MiG-19 Farmer. The Voodoo pilot Chang Yupao was killed.
27 April 1965 A US Air Force ERB-47H Stratojet of the 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing (43290), was damaged in an attack by two North Korean MiG-17 Frescos over the Sea of Japan. The B-47s tail gunner returned fire, possibly shooting down one MiG-17. The B-47 made an emergency landing at Yokota AB Japan, with two engines inoperative and severe structural damage. The crew of Hobart Mattison, Henry E. Dubuy, Robert J. Rogers, Robert C. Winters, George V. Back and one other crew member, escaped injury.
18 May 1965 A US Army aircraft was shot down by North Korean ground fire.
27 June 1965 A Republic of China Air Force C-123B Provider was shot down over South Vietnam by the Viet Cong.
31 August 1965 A Republic of China Air Force C-123B Provider was reported to have been shot down over the South China Sea.
11 September 1965 A US Air Force RB-57F, operated by Pakistan Air Force 24th Squadron, was damaged by an SA-2 Guideline missile over India while it was beginning its descent towards Peshawar from Ambala. The missile exploded near the RB-57F, causing extensive structural damage, but the aircraft was able to make a successful forced landing at Peshawar. The aircraft was repaired by Pakistan and later returned to the USA.
22 October 1965 Republic of China Air Force U-2C (Article 352, 6685) crashed off the northwest coast of Taiwan and pilot "Pete" Wang was killed.
14 December 1965 A US Air Force RB-57F of the 7407 Support Squadron at Wiesbaden West Germany, was lost over the Black Sea, near Odessa. Pilot Lester L. Lackey and crew member Robert Yates were presumed killed. Recent investigations indicate that there might not have been any Soviet activity related to this loss. The crew probably perished from an oxygen system failure, since it took over an hour for the aircraft to spiral down from altitude and fall into the Black Sea. After 7 or 8 days spent searching for the aircraft, only small bits and pieces of wreckage were ever found.
10 January 1966 A HU-16 of the Republic of China Air Force was shot down by People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-17 over Matsu whilst transporting defectors to Taiwan.
11 May 1966 South Korea Air Force F-5s intercepted a Soviet An-8 Camp flying near North Korea. This An-8 was likely an environmental monitoring aircraft, taking air samples from the nuclear test conducted by the People's Republic of China two days earlier.
30 October 1966 Super Mysteres of the Israel Air Force intercepted a Lebanese DC-7.
1967 A US Air Force ERB-47H Stratojet of the 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, flying over Iran, near the Soviet border, was reported to have been hit by a Soviet surface-to-air missile. The damaged aircraft managed to reach the mountains north of Tehran, but crashed before being able to land, killing the entire crew.
13 January 1967 Twelve People's Republic of China PLAAF MiG-19 Farmers fought four Republic of China Air Force F-104G Starfighters over the Straits of Taiwan. One MiG-19 was claimed by Hu Shih-Lin and one by Bei-Puo Shih. One F-104G (64-17779) failed to return to base.
28 June 1967 Soviet pilot O.G. Stepanov forced an Iranian L-20 to land.
22 August 1967 A Republic of China Air Force C-123B Provider was reported to have been shot down over the South China Sea.
9 September 1967 A Republic of China Air Force U-2C was shot down over Jiaxing, People's Republic of China and pilot "Tom" Hwang Lung Pei was killed.
25 May 1968 A Soviet Tu-16 Badger buzzed a group of US Navy vessels, including the USS Essex (CVS-9), off the coast of northern Norway. Shortly after passing low over the Essex, the Soviet bomber banked and one wing tip hit the sea. The plane then cartwheeled and exploded. There were no survivors.
1 July 1968 A Seaboard World Airlines DC-8 carrying 214 US troops to Vietnam, from McChord Air Force Base, Washington, via Yokota Air Force Base, Japan was forced to land on Etoforu Island in the Kuril Island chain by Soviet fighters. Pilot Joseph Tosolini was warned by a Japan Self-Defense Force radar site on the northern island of Hokkaido that he had strayed off course and was headed for the Soviet Union. The warning came too late, as the aircraft had already been intercepted by MiGs flown by Yu.B. Alexandrov, V.A. Igonin, I.F. Evtoshenko and I.K. Moroz. A day later, after the Soviets received an apology for the incident, the aircraft and passengers were released.
15 March 1969 A US helicopter, evacuating wounded from a firefight in the Korean DMZ crashed, killing 5 crewmen, 2 US infantrymen and a South Korean infantryman.
15 April 1969 While flying a patrol mission over the Sea of Japan, a US Navy EC-121M of VQ-1 (BuNo 135749) was attacked and shot down by two North Korean MiG-17 Fresco fighters 90 miles off the coast of Korea. All 31 crew members, James H. Overstreet, James L. Roach, John Dzema, John H. Potts, Dennis B. Gleason, Louis F. Balderman, Peter P. Perrottet, Richard H. Kincaid, John H. Singer, Dennis J. Horrigan, Robert F. Taylor, Frederick A. Randall, Robert J. Sykora, Stephen J. Tesmer, Norman E. Wilkerson, Hugh M. Lynch, Marshall H. McNamara, Gene K. Graham, Laverne A. Greiner, David M. Willis, Richard E. Smith, Gary R. Ducharme, Ballard F. Connors Jr., John A. Miller Jr., Stephen C. Chartier, Philip D. Sundby, Bernie J. Colgin, Richard Prindle, Timothy H. McNeil, Richard E. Sweeney and Joseph R. Ribar, were all killed in the attack. Two bodies and some wreckage was recovered by search vessels.
16 May 1969 RoCAF U-2 pilot Hsieh Chang was killed his aircraft crashed south of Cheju Island, Korea.
5 June 1969 A US Air Force RC-135E (62-4137) on a Rivet Amber mission disappeared with its 19-man crew while on a flight from Shemya AFB to Eielson AFB. Structural failure associated with the fuselage radome appears to be the likely cause of this loss.
17 August 1969 A US Army OH-23 Raven of the 59th Aviation Company was shot down over the Korean demilitarized zone. The crew, Malcolm Loepke, Herman Hofstatter and one other, were captured by the North Koreans and released 108 days later.
18 May 1970 Several Cuban MiG-21 Fishbeds overflew the Bahamas to send a pointed message to the Bahamian government, which was holding fourteen Cuban fisherman it claimed had been fishing in its waters. The fishermen were soon released.
1 October 1970 A US Army helicopter was fired on by North Korean gun positions along the Korean DMZ.
21 October 1970 A US Air Force U-8 was lost over the USSR (Armenia). The crew of 4 were all rescued.
17 November 1970 A US Air Force KC-135R Briar Patch, piloted by James W. Jones, was intercepted by Soviet MiG-17 Frescos, while conducted a SIGINT flight over international waters near Vaygach Island. One of the MiG-17s fired warning shots, but the KC-135R ignored them and continued on its mission. The MiGs continued to escort the KC-135R, but did not fire on it again.
1971 A US Air Force C-130 Hercules was reported to have crashed near the Soviet border, in Iran.
21 February 1973 While flying from Benghazi Libya to Cairo Egypt as Flight 114, a Libyan Arab Airlines Boeing 727-224 (5A-DAH) strayed off course in cloudy weather after passing Sidi Barrani and continued past Cairo. Over the Israeli-controlled Sinai desert the aircraft was intercepted by two F-4E Phantom II fighters of the Israel Air Force 201 Squadron. The fighter pilots tried to get the airliner to land at the Israeli air base at Bir Gifgafa by exchanging hand signals with the airliner's pilots, rocking their wings and finally firing across the nose of the Libyan plane. The airliner lowered its wheels but raised them again and banked in an apparent attempt to escape. The fighter pilots then attacked the 727, hitting the right hand wingtip with cannon fire. A fire erupted and the airliner crew attempted to make a belly landing in the desert, but crashed. Of the 9 crew members and 104 passengers on board, 8 crew members and 100 passengers were killed. The Israel government later issued an apology and paid $3 million in compensation for this incident.
10 August 1973 Israel Air Force Mirage IIICJs intercepted a Middle East Airlines Caravelle soon after it took off from Beirut and forced it to land at Lod airport in Israel. There, the Israeli authorities searched the aircraft for George Habash, the leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. However, Habash was not on board and the airliner was released.
4 October 1973 A Soviet Tu-16 Badger overflew the USS John F. Kennedy (CVA-67) in the Norwegian Sea. While attempting to escort the bomber away from the area, a US Navy F-4 Phantom II collided with it. The Tu-16 safely returned to its base and the F-4 landed at Bodø Norway.
23 November 1973 Republic of China Air Force pilot Chi-Hsien "Denny" Huang was killed when U-2R (68-10335) crashed near Taiwan.
28 November 1973 Soviet MiG-21SM Fishbed pilot Gennadii N. Eliseev intercepted an Imperial Iranian Air Force RF-4E Phantom II in Soviet airspace. After an unsuccessful attempt at firing a AA-2 Atoll missile at the Phantom, Eliseev destroyed the Phantom by ramming it. The Phantom's crew of IIAF pilot Major Shokouhnia and USAF backseater Saunders parachuted to safety and were captured by Soviet border guards. They were released 16 days later.
27 February 1974 A Soviet An-24 Coke reconnaissance aircraft, low on fuel, made an emergency landing at Gambell Airfield in Alaska. The crew remained on the aircraft overnight and were provided with space heaters and food. The next day they were refueled and departed for home.
March 1974 The crew of a Soviet Border Guards Mi-4 Hound on a scout mission along the USSR-People's Republic of China border became lost and crossed the border into China south of Belesha. The helicopter ran out of fuel and landed in the PRoC. The three crew members were imprisoned in China until December 1975, when the crew and the helicopter were returned to the USSR.
9 May 1974 Two US helicopters received North Korean ground fire along the Injin River.
12 April 1976 Israel Air Force fighters intercepted a Saudi Arabian Air Force C-130 that had strayed into Israel's airspace. The aircraft was forced to land at Ben Gurion airport and the crew of 36 was held for two hours before being released.
1977 An Imperial Iranian Air Force F-4E Phantom II was reported to have damaged a Soviet MiG-25R Foxbat over Iran with an AIM-7 Sparrow missile. The damaged Soviet aircraft managed to make it back over the Soviet border before crashing.
14 July 1977 A US Army CH-47 Chinook was downed over the Korean demilitarized zone by a North Korean MiG-21 Fishbed. The CH-47's pilot was captured and the other three crew members, Robert Haynes, Joesph Miles and Ronald Wells, were killed. The pilot was released after 57 hours of captivity.
10 September 1977 A squadron of Cuban MiG-21MF Fishbeds under the command of Rafael del Pino overflew Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic to press for the release of the merchant ship Capitan Leo, which, enroute to Angola, had violated Dominican waters and been interned by the authorities. The plan was to bomb Puerto Plata and Santiago de los Caballeros the next day if the Dominican government didn't release the ship, but after hurried negotiations it did.
20 April 1978 A Korean Air Lines Boeing 707-321B (HL-7429, flight 902) flew over Murmansk while on a Anchorage-Paris flight, due to a navigation error. A Soviet PVO Su-15 Flagon, piloted by A. Bosov, intercepted it and fired an air-to-air missile at the airliner. The missile blew off part of the 707's wing and showered the fuselage with shrapnel, killing two passengers. The pilot of the 707, Captain Kim Chang Ky, reported that when he caught sight of' the Soviet interceptor he reduced speed, lowered his landing gear, and flashed his navigation lights on and off, all ICAO procedures signifying willingness to follow the Soviet interceptor. After his airliner was damaged, he descended through clouds to lower altitude and in doing so, he became separated from the Soviet interceptor. For more than an hour the airliner flew at an altitude of several thousand feet across the snow-covered terrain, seeking a safe landing place. The Soviets had no idea where he was. Several approaches to possible landing sites where aborted when obstructions were spotted at the last moment. Finally, after nightfall, the crew found a frozen lake bed, just west of Kem, and let down smoothly, skidding to a safe landing. Of the 97 passengers and 12 crew on board, two passengers were killed.
21 July 1978 Four Imperial Iranian Army CH-47C Chinooks penetrated 15-20 km into Soviet airspace in the Turkimenistan Military District. They were first intercepted by Soviet MiG-23M Flogger pilot A.V. Dem'janov, who mistakenly identified them as Soviet helicopters. The helicopters were intercepted a little later by MiG-23M pilot V.I. Shkinder. He fired two R-60 (AA-8 Aphid) missiles, shooting down one Chinook, killing eight crew members. He then fired his GSh-23L 23mm cannon at another Chinook , forcing it to land near Gjaurs. The four crew members of this helicopter survived, but were captured by Soviet border guards. The remaining two Chinooks escaped back into Iranian airspace. Shortly thereafter, the Soviets allowed the damaged Chinook (S-4092) to be repaired by Iranians. This helicopter and its four crew members were then allowed to return home.
3 September 1978 An Air Rhodesia Vickers Viscount 782D (VP-WAS), on a flight from Kariba to Salisbury was shot down by a SA-7 Grail missile fired by guerrillas, shortly after take-off. Of the 56 people on board, 38 died in the crash and ten more were killed by guerrillas, after having survived the crash.
12 February 1979 An Air Rhodesia Vickers Viscount 748D (VP-YND), on a flight from Kariba to Salisbury was shot down by a SA-7 Grail missile fired by guerrillas, shortly after take-off. All 59 people on board were killed.
1980 A Soviet Tu-95 Bear, flying from the USSR to Cuba entered US airspace and passed very close to Langley AFB in Virginia (it could be seen from the control tower). The aircraft was intercepted by F-15s from the US Air Force 1st TFW and escorted out of US airspace.
10 May 1980 Two Cuban MiG-21 Fishbeds attacked the Bahamian patrol vessel HMBS Flamingo, which had arrested four Cuban fishing vessels. Cuba admitted this attack to be in error and paid indemnity.
8 June 1980 A TAAG Angola Airlines Yak-40FG Codling (D2-TYC) was shot down by a MiG-19 Farmer, possibly of the Zambian Air Force.
27 June 1980 An Itavia (Aero Transporti Italiani) DC-9-15 (I-TIGI), Flight 870, a crashed into the Tyrrhenian Sea near the island of Ustica, about 80 miles southwest of Naples. All 81 persons aboard the aircraft were killed after it experienced severe damage in flight, broke up, plummeted to the sea, and then sank into several thousand feet of water. Accident investigators concluded that it was damaged by an explosion, probably of external origin. It has been theorized that its loss was associated with a Libyan MiG-23MS Flogger, found on July 18, crashed on the northern side of Mount Sila in the Italian province of Calabria. The pilot of the Libyan aircraft was Ezedin Koal.
16 September 1980 As many as 15 Libyan fighters intercepted US Air Force RC-135U Combat Sent (64-14847) of the 55 Strategic Reconnaissance Wing over the Gulf of Sidra. Accounts differ as to whether the Libyan fighters open fire on the aircraft before being chased away by US Navy fighters.
18 July 1981 A Soviet Su-15TM Flagon, flown by Valentin Kalyupin, rammed and destroyed a Canadair CL-44 (LV-JTN) belonging to the Argentine company Transportes Aereo Rioplatense over Soviet Armenia, thirty miles southeast of Yerevan, not far from the Iranian border. The CL-44 had just completed the third of twelve scheduled flights from Tel Aviv to Tehran via Larnaca, Cyprus, carrying the aircraft tires and other spares bought from Israeli arms dealers. Killed in the crash of the CL-44 were the pilot Hector Cordero, along with crew members Jose Burgueno, Hermete Boasso and Stuart McCafferty. Cordero, Burgeueno, and Boasso were Argentinians, while McCafferty was from the UK. The Soviet Su-15 pilot, Kalyuppin, parachuted to safety.
19 August 1981 US Navy F-14A Tomcats, of VF-41, flown by Henry Kleeman (RIO David Venlet) and Lawrence Muczynski (RIO James Anderson), flying from the USS Nimitz, each shot down a Libyan Su-22 Fitter over the Gulf of Sidra.
November 1981 South African Air Force Mirage F.1CZ pilot Johann Rankin shot down an Angolan MiG-21 Fishbed.
21 February 1982 A Cuban MiG-21PFMA Fishbed crashed into the sea and its pilot was killed after he lost control while maneuvering at slow speed while attempting to intercept a light aircraft that had violated Cuban airspace
5 October 1982 South African Air Force Mirage F.1CZ pilot Johann Rankin shot down an Angolan MiG-21 Fishbed while on a reconnaissance flight over SWAPO bases.
1 September 1983 A Korean Air Lines Boeing 747-230B (HL-7442, flight 007), was shot down over Sakhalin Island by AA-3 Anab missiles fired by a Soviet Su-15 Flagon piloted by Gennadi N. Osipovich. The aircraft was off-course, likely due to a navigation error and had already overflown the Kamchatka Pennisula. All 23 crew and 246 passengers (including US Congressman Lawrence McDonald from Georgia) were killed.
9 August 1984 A Soviet fighter pursuing an Airbus 310 jetliner intruded thirty miles into Swedish airspace, at one point closing to within about a mile of the airliner, which was unaware of the fighter. Radio intercepts showed that the Su-15 Flagon fighter had armed and locked on its air-to-air missiles. The Soviets, on October 21, officially denied that any such thing had happened and claimed the jet was fifty miles from where the Swedish radars showed it.
29 September 1985 South African Air Force Impala Mark II pilots Leon Mare and Pine Pienaar each claimed to have shot down an Angolan Mi-25 Hind helicopter.
30 September 1985 South African Air Force Impala Mark II pilots Kevin Truter and Nefie van den Heever each claimed to have shot down an Angolan Mi-25 Hind helicopter. Impala pilot Wayne Westoby claimed to have shot down a Mi-17 Hip and a Mi-25 Hind.
4 February 1986 Two Israel Air Force F-15s intercepted a Libyan Gulfstream II business jet enroute to Damascus, east of Cyprus and forced it to land at Ramat David air base. Intelligence information had led the Israelis to believe that top Palestinian leaders were on board. After searching the aircraft for four hours, none were found and the aircraft was released.
3 April 1986 Two Cuban MiG-21MF Fishbeds intercepted two C-130 Hercules over Angola, which were reportedly carrying cargo to UNITA. They shot down one and the other escaped, seriously damaged. According to South Africa (and the International Air Transport Association) they actually shot down a civilian C-130 registered to the TAAG, the Angolan government airline.
Late 1986 A Kuwaiti airliner, en route from Damascus to Teheran, safely made an emergency landing in the Soviet Union, at Yerevan, when a sudden storm shut down all airfields in Iran. The Boeing 727 had turned around and headed back west, but was too short of fuel to reach any airfields in Turkey. The crew desperately radioed to the Soviet air traffic control facility in Armenia. Once permission had been granted, the airliner crossed the Soviet border near Dzhulfa and made a safe landing at Yerevan. The plane was serviced and fueled and took off the following morning.
5 October 1986 A Corporate Air Services C-123 Provider (HPF821, previously N4410F) departed San Salvador-Ilopango Airport loaded with 70 Soviet-made AK-47 rifles and 100,000 round of ammunition, rocket grenades and other supplies. It flew along the Nicaraguan coastline and entered Nicaraguan airspace near the Costa Rican border. Nearing San Carlos, the plane descended to 2,500 feet while preparing to drop off its cargo. While doing so, it was shot down by a Sandinista soldier, using a SA-7 Grail. CIA pilots Wallace "Buzz" Sawyer and William Cooper were killed in the crash. Loadmaster Eugene Hasenfus parachuted to safety and was taken prisoner. He was later released in December 1986.
30 March 1987 Pakistan Air Force F-16 pilot Abdul Razzaq shot down a Afghan or Soviet An-26 Curl over the Pakistan-Afghanistan border area.
16 April 1987 Pakistan Air Force F-16 pilot Badar-ul-Islam shot down a Afghan or Soviet Su-22 Fitter over the Pakistan-Afghanistan border area.
28 May 1987 West Germany 19-year old private pilot Mathias Rust flew a rented Cessna 172 Skyhawk (D-ECJB) from Helsinki, Finland to Moscow, and landed in Red Square. He wasn't shot down because the two Soviet interceptor pilots who were shadowing him were reluctant to open fire on the small plane. After serving 18 months in a Soviet prison, Rust was released. Soviet Air-defense commander Koldunov was removed from his position because of this incident.
28 May 1987 Two Lebanese Air Force Fouga Magisters were intercepted by Israel Air Force fighters and forced to land at Ramat David air base. The trainers were detected flying near Israeli airspace, but it turned out that they were searching for a yacht in distress. The aircraft were refueled and released. An Israeli patrol boat subsequently found and aided the yacht.
13 September 1987 A Soviet Su-27P Flanker of the 941st IAP, flown by Vasiliy Tsymbal, intercepted a Lockheed P-3B Orion of the 333 squadron of the Royal Norwegian Air Force, flown by Jan Salvesen, over the Barents Sea. While maneuvering below the P-3B, the Su-27P collided with the outboard right propeller of the Orion. The impact shattered a fin tip of the Su-27P and caused fragments of the propeller to puncture the P-3B's fuselage, causing a decompression. Because of the damaged propeller, the Orion experienced severe vibrations and the outboard right engine was shut down. The aircraft disengaged and returned safely to their bases. Tsymbal was expelled from the Communist Party three days later, but was reinstated after a day. Shortly thereafter he was awarded the Order of the Red Star. The Orion's pilot emerged from the incident with no blemishes to his service record and the Soviet Union officially apologized to Norway.
27 September 1987 Angolan MiG-23 Flogger pilot Chao Gondin shared in the downing of a South African Air Force Mirage F.1 with Alberto Ley Rivas. Rivas claimed a second South African Air Force Mirage, possibly on the same date.
May 1988 Three days in a row, Norwegian pilot Andreas Sommers penetrated 2-3 km into Soviet airspace in a Cessna 152. Soviet fighters were unable to intercept him before he returned to Norwegian airspace.
17 May 1988 Pakistan Air Force F-16 pilot A. Hameed Qadri shot down two Soviet Su-22 Fitters over the Pakistan-Afghanistan border area.
3 July 1988 An Iran Air Airbus A300B2-203 (EP-IBU), flight IR655, flying from Bandar Abbas to Dubai, was shot down over the Strait of Hormuz by two SM-2 Standard surface-to-air missiles fired by the USS Vincennes. At about the time the Airbus took off, the Vincennes' radar picked up a brief Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) mode 2 response, which led to the mistaken identification of the Airbus as a hostile Iranian F-14 aircraft. The USS Vincennes issued 7 challenges on the Military Air Distress (MAD) frequency (243 MHz), addressed to 'Iranian aircraft', 'Iranian fighter' or 'Iranian F-14'. These messages were followed by three challenges on the International Air Defense (IAD) frequency. A number of the AEGIS radar operators on the Vincennes misread the displays and reported that the incoming plane was descending with an increasing speed. This fact, and the fact that the aircraft didn't respond to the challenges led to the decision to launch two missiles against the perceived hostile target. All 290 passengers and crew onboard the Airbus were killed.
4 August 1988 Pakistan Air Force F-16 pilot Akhtar Imam Bokhari shot down a Soviet Su-25 Frogfoot over the Pakistan-Afghanistan border area.
8 August 1988 An Angolan MiG-23 Flogger pilot fired two R-60 (AA-8 Aphid) missiles at a British Aerospace 125 Series 800 (OK-1) carrying the President of Botswana, J.K. Quett Masire, and his staff to a meeting of the Front Line States in Luanda Angola. One missile hit the right hand engine of the business jet, blowing it off the airframe. The second missile locked on to and hit the falling engine. The pilot of the business jet was incapicated when the cabin steward was blown forward, onto him. The co-pilot, Arthur Ricketts, made a successful emergency landing on a bush strip at Cutio Bie.
12 September 1988 Pakistan Air Force F-16 pilot Khalid Mahmood shot down two Soviet MiG-23MLD Floggers over the Pakistan-Afghanistan border area.
28 September 1988 Soviet MiG-23MLD Flogger pilots Vladmir Astakhov and Boris Gavrilov each shot down an Iranian helicopter.
3 November 1988 Pakistan Air Force F-16 pilot Khalid Mahmood shot down an Afghan Su-22 Fitter over the Pakistan-Afghanistan border area.
20 November 1988 Pakistan Air Force F-16 pilot Muhammad Abbas Khattak shot down a Soviet An-26 Curl over the Pakistan-Afghanistan border area.
4 January 1989 US Navy F-14A Tomcats, of VF-32, flown by Joseph Connelly (RIO Leo Enwright) and Hermon Cook (RIO Steven Collins), flying from the USS John F. Kennedy, each shot down a Libyan MiG-23 Flogger over the Gulf of Sidra.
31 January 1989 Pakistan Air Force F-16 pilot Khalid Mahmood shot down a Soviet An-24 Coke over the Pakistan-Afghanistan border area.
4 July 1989 A Soviet MiG-23 Flogger, piloted by Colonel Skurigin, took off from an airbase near Kolobzreg on the coast of the Baltic Sea in Poland, on a training flight. After take-off the pilot realized he was losing engine power. The pilot ejected and landed safely by parachute. The engine then regained power and the aircraft flew away to the West, guided by the autopilot. The fighter left the airspace of the East Germany and entered West German airspace where it was intercepted by a pair of USAF F-15s. The F-15s were denied permission to fire on the MiG and had to let it fly away. Eventually, after flying 900 km, the MiG-23 ran out of fuel and crashed into a house near Kortrijk, Belgium. An 18-year old man in the house was killed.
25 August 1990 A People's Republic of China MiG-19 Farmer crossed the border into the USSR and landed at Knevichi, as Soviet Naval Air Force base near Vladivostok. The plane and its pilot were returned to the PRoC on August 30, 1990.
24 April 1992 Peruvian Su-22 Fitters attacked a USAF C-130H Hercules of the 310th Airlift Squadron injuring six of the fourteen crew members. Crew member Joseph C. Beard, Jr., was sucked from the cabin at 18,500 feet and Ronald Hetzel sustained severe injuries.
17 December 1994 A US Army OH-58A Kiowa (71-20796), on a training flight near the Korean DMZ, strayed off-course and was shot down over North Korea. One crew member, David Hilemon, was killed. The North Koreans turned over his body to U.S. authorities five days after the shoot-down at the Panmunjom truce village. The other crew member, Bobby W. Hall II, was taken captive by the North Koreans and released 13 days later.
20 March 1995 Hungarian Air Force MiG-29 Fulcrum pilot Colonel Laszlo Uhrin intercepted a Cessna 172 Skyhawk entering Hungarian airspace from Slovak airspace. When the MiG-29 appeared on his wingtip, the Cessna pilot immediately realized he was in trouble and signaled the fighter by waggling his wings. Colonel Uhrin directed the Cessna to Budapest Ferihegy International Airport, where it landed safely. It turned out that the Cessna pilot had planned to fly to Debrecen Hungary but he hadn't received clearance to enter Hungarian airspace.
24 February 1996 Three US civilian registered (N2456S, N5485S and N2506) Cessna 337s, operated by the Brothers to the Rescue on a humanitarian search and rescue mission, were intercepted by a Cuban MiG-29UB Fulcrum and a MiG-23ML Fishbed over the Florida Straits. The MiG-29UB, piloted by Lorenzo Alberto Peréz Peréz, shot down N2456S and N5485S, while N2506 escaped. Crew members Armando Alejandre, Jr., Mario de la Pena, Carlos Costa and Pablo Morales were all killed.
15 January 1998 At 2:50pm, a Russian Su-27P Flanker, flown by Andrey Oleynik, was scrambled to intercept an unidentified radar target over the Kaliningrad region. After intercepting the aircraft, he identified it as a Estonian registered Aero L-29 Delfin (ES-YLE). Irish pilots Mark Jeffries and Clive Davison were staging the L-29 from Tallinn Estonian to Cambridge England via Kaunas and Gdansk. At the time of the interception they were 20 km inside Russian territory. After being commanded to follow the Su-27P, the crew of the L-29 tried to escape, but were intercepted by another Su-27P with V. Shekoorov at the controls. Eventually, the crew of the L-29 contacted Russian air traffic control and were told to land at the Kaliningrad-Khrabrovo airport. After landing, the crew was arrested and questioned. They claimed that strong headwinds had increased their fuel consumption and this necessitated their attempt to cut through Russian airspace.
28 August 2000 Two People's Republic of China J-8 Finbacks intercepted a US Air Force RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft operating in international airspace at 28,000 feet over the East China Sea. The Chinese jets closed to within two miles of the American aircraft.
17 October 2000 Two Russian aircraft, a Su-24 Fencer and a Su-27 Flanker overflew the carrier USS Kitty Hawk at about 200 feet of altitude. At the time, the Kitty Hawk was in the midst of an underway replenishment n the northern Sea of Japan, between the island of Hokkaido and the Russian mainland. Following the overflight, the Russian pilots e-mailed pictures of their overflight to the Kitty Hawk's web site. Russian aircraft also overflew the Kitty Hawk on October 12th and November 9th.
1 April 2001 A US Navy EP-3E Aries II (BuNo 156511) of VQ-1, with a crew of 24, was damaged in a mid-air collision with one of two intercepting People's Republic of China PLANAF J-8 II Finbacks off the coast of Hainan Island. The EP-3E made an emergency landing at an airbase in Lingshui China. The pilot of the J-8 II (81192) involved in the collision, Wang Wei, ejected and was lost at sea. Wang Wei was a pilot in the 25th Regiment of the 9th Division of the People's Liberation Army Navy Air Force, based at Lingshui. The pilot of the second J-8 II, Zhao Yu, returned safely to base. On April 11th the USN crew of Shane Osborn (pilot), John Comerford (co-pilot), Richard Bensing, Steven Blocher, Bradford Borland, David Cecka, Shawn Coursen, Jeremy Crandall, Josef Edmunds, Brandon Funk, Scott Guidry, Jason Hanser, Patrick Honeck, Regina Kauffman, Nicholas Mellos, Ramon Mercado, Richard Payne, Kenneth Richter, Marcia Sonon, Jeffery Vignery, Wendy Westbrook, Rodney Young, Mitchell Pray (USMC) and Curtis Towne (USAF) was released and flew home on a chartered Continental Air Micronesia Boeing 737. The EP-3E was disassembled and returned to the US in a Polyot An-124 Condor in July 2001.
22 July 2001 A Pakistan Airlines Boeing 747 en route from Islamabad Pakistan to Manchester UK strayed into Russian air space. The airliner's crew had not requested permission to fly through Russian air space and did not respond to air traffic controllers' communications. A MiG-29 Fulcrum intercepted the airliner and forced it land at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport. Following an investigation into why the airliner had illegally entered Russia's 150 kilometer (93 mile) air border zone, the airliner was allowed to depart for Manchester later in the day.
2 March 2003 Four North Korean fighter aircraft, two MiG-29 Fulcrums and what appeared to be two MiG-23 Floggers intercepted a US Air Force RC-135S Cobra Ball over the Sea of Japan, about 150 miles off North Korea coast. At one point one of the fighters locked on to the RC-135 with its radar. The RC-135 broke off its mission and returned to its home station at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa.
22 March 2003 Two Russian Air Force fighters scrambled to intercept a US Air Force U-2 flying in the proximity of Russia's border with Georgia in the Caucasus. The Russian fighters were ordered to prevent the violation of the country's airspace by the U-2, which was flying at a distance of 20-30 km from the Russian-Georgian border in Georgia's airspace. It was reported that this was the third flight of the American reconnaissance aircraft along the Russian-Georgian border within a month. Two previous reconnaissance flights were reported to have taken place on February 27 and March 7.
4 July 2003 Two Indonesian F-16s intercepted US Navy F-18s maneuvering over Bawean Island in the Java Sea. The F-18s were providing air cover for a task force of an aircraft carrier, two frigates and a tanker traveling in the area. The F-18s maneuvered into position and achieved radar lock-on before the F-16s left the area.
15 November 2004 A US Navy EP-3E Aries II, was detected 6 miles off the Russian Black Sea coast at an altitude of 6,500 feet. The aircraft was intercepted by a Su-27 Flanker of the Russian 4th Air Force. When the Su-27 approached, the EP-3E turned and flew away from the area.
1 March 2005 A US Navy P-3 and a US Air Force U-2 reconnaissance aircraft intruded on closed Israeli airspace, forcing the postponement of the launch of the new Long Range Artillery (LORA) missile. The launch was succesfully carried out on March 3.
4 July 2005 An American RQ-7 Shadow-200 UAV reportedly crashed 60 kilometers (about 38 miles) inside Iranian territory in Ilam province.
25 August 2005 An American Silver Arrow Hermes UAV was reported to have crashed 200 kilometers (125 miles) inside Iranian territory in the Khoram Abad area.