Ceremony recognizes Nellis officer killed in action during Vietnam War

WASHINGTON — An officer from Nellis Air Force Base whose jet crashed in Laos 40 years ago — but whose remains were recovered only recently — was recognized in a weekend ceremony at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Lt. Col. Robert Mack Brown’s name had been engraved on the Vietnam Memorial Wall with a cross designating him as missing in action. But the official change in his status to “killed in action” came after recovered remains were positively matched in January 2012 to a DNA sample supplied by his sister.

A ceremony Sunday recognized Brown’s engraving had been updated by a diamond symbol superimposed over the cross. He was one of 14 Vietnam servicemen similarly noted after their remains were accounted for.

Four other servicemen were added to the wall, after sustaining wounds in Vietnam from which they eventually died.

Brown was from Portsmouth, Va., and flew with the 474th Tactical Fighter Wing out of Nellis. On Nov. 7, 1972, an F-111 attack jet carrying Brown and co-pilot Maj. Robert Morrissey was lost en route to a bombing run on North Vietnam.

When the jet and the pilots could not be found, reports took hold they had probably been captured and taken to the Soviet Union, part of lore that Americans still were alive and being held prisoner after the war.

Through the identification of remains, it was concluded the plane had crashed in a mountainous region of Laos.

Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nev., whose district includes Nellis Air Force Base, served as keynote speaker during the ceremony.

Horsford said the names carved into the memorial wall “represent those who risked everything for their country. Together they represent the pinnacle of American heroism.”

Contact Stephens Washington Bureau Chief Steve Tetreault at stetreault@stephensmedia.com or 202-783-1760. Follow him on Twitter @STetreaultDC.