1952 — June 13, USAF RB-29 intel plane, from Yokota Air Base, Japan, shot down, Sea of Japan–12

–12 Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office. “Personnel Accounting Progress Cold War Fact..”
–12 RB-29.net. “Recollections of an RB-29 crew in Japan.”
–12 Spyflight.co.uk. “Boeing B-29 / F-13A / RB-29A / RB-29A Washington / RB-50.”

Narrative Information

Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office: “June 13, 1952, a U.S. Air Force RB-29 aircraft stationed at Yokota Air Base, Japan, was shot down over the Sea of Japan. The entire crew of 12 remains unaccounted for.” (Defense POW/ Missing Personnel Office. “Personnel Accounting Progress Cold War Fact Sheet.” Feb 2012.)

RB-29.net: “Over the years, family members of this RB-29 crew, shot down in the Sea of Japan, June 13, 1952, have formed a coalition to search out details relating to the loss of this aircraft and crew. They have offered the story of their search for inclusion on this web site as a memorial to their lost loved ones and a plea for further information from any knowledgeable source that may throw additional light on the subject….

“During the Cold War they were to have been “Weather Gathering” or “Training Flights.” But the “Ferret flights” as they were secretly called were probing the Soviet Union’s defenses, their electronic communications, and their atomic testing. Information that was gathered then could probably be picked up by some microchip in a satellite today. Of course, if questioned, some in government would still deny this fact. Archive papers, and the men who survived these flights would tell a different story. Sheldon Goldberg, a historian at the Air Force History Support Office claims that “People are still tightlipped about these missions. “This is all shadowy stuff that has not fully come to light.” The following story is about one of those planes that did not return —

“On June 13, 1952 at 10:07 a.m. Major Sam Busch and his crew of 11 left Yokota Air Base, Honshu Japan….

“According to official records, the RB-29 #44 61810 departed with the following crew on board (they were all from the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron):

Navigator, 1st Lt. Robert J. McDonnell…
Scanner, S/Sgt. Roscoe G. Becker
Tail Gunner, S/Sgt. Eddie R. Berg…
Scanner, Leon F. Bonura, Flight Engineer
Master Sgt. William R. Homer…
Radar Operator, Capt. [posthumously promoted] Samuel D. Service
Pilot, 1st. Lt. James A. Sculley
Aircraft Commander, Major Samuel N. Busch
Radio Operator, S/Sgt. William A. Blizzard
Central Fire Control Gunner, S/Sgt. Miguel W. Monserrat
Camera Operator, A/1c Danny Pillsbury
T/Sgt. David L. Moore…

“The official 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. The aircraft failed to return to Yokota Air Base and although several attempts were made to establish radio contact, no communications from the crew were received. The missing aircraft was known to have three six-man and 11 one-man life rafts on board and sufficient food and medical supplies to care for all 12 crew members for three days.

“On June 14, 1952, during the search, an empty six-man life raft was sighted, right side up, at a point about 100 miles off the Russian coast, but search planes were unable to salvage the raft due to prevailing conditions. An unconfirmed report indicated that a second six-man life raft was seen four miles south of the first raft, but this sighting could not be verified. The search continued until June 17, 1952 but no wreckage was found and no survivors were sighted. A message was received from the Commander, Far East Air Forces’ indicating that an official report from Radio Moscow on June 16, 1952 stated that one officer survivor was 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. Later the Commander of the Far East Air Force, reported that the cited broadcast did not pertain to this incident….

‘The crew members were continued in a missing status until November 14, 1955 when their status was “administratively” changed by the Department of the Air Force to “deceased by presumptive finding of death.”….” (RB-29.net. “Recollections of an RB-29 crew in Japan. Selected RB-29 Cold War Excerpts relating to the Mysteries of the Cold War RB-29 Flight #4461810.”)

Spyflight: “13 Jun 52 shot down in the East Sea/Sea of Japan near the Kamchatka Peninsula by Russian fighters. All 12 crew presumed killed. Later reported that an officer, believed to be a crewmember from this aircraft, was observed in a Soviet hospital at Narionburg near the Kolymar River in Oct 53. The USSR repeatedly denied holding any survivors from this aircraft.” (Spyflight.co.uk. “Boeing B-29 / F-13A / RB-29A / RB-29A Washington / RB-50.”)

Sources

Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office. “Personnel Accounting Progress Cold War Fact Sheet.” Feb 2012. Accessed 2-20-2012: http://cryptocomb.org/cold_war_pow%20factsheet.pdf

RB-29.net. “Recollections of an RB-29 crew in Japan.” Accessed 2-20-2012 at: http://www.rb-29.net/html/01Crewstory/07cwreco2.htm

Spyflight.co.uk. “Boeing B-29 / F-13A / RB-29A / RB-29A Washington / RB-50.” Accessed at: http://www.spyflight.co.uk/rb29.htm