  Lieutenant Commander T. R. Powers in A-4E BuNo. 151173 side number AH 466 was shot down by triple A, over North Vietnam. Lieutenant Commander Powers survived the ejection and was captured by the North Vietnamese and was murdered by the North Vietnamese while in captivity. He was awarded the Navy Cross.  POWERS, TRENT RICHARD Captain, U.S. Navy Attack Squadron 164, U.S.S. Oriskany Date of Action: October 31, 1965 Citation: The Navy Cross is presented to Trent Richard Powers, Captain, U.S. Navy, for extraordinary heroism on 31 October 1965 while serving as a pilot of jet attack aircraft with Attack Squadron 164, embarked in U.S.S. Oriskany (CVA-34) during a combat mission over hostile territory in North Vietnam. Captain (then Lieutenant Commander) Powers was assigned the demanding and unusual task of leading a two-division, United States Air Force flight into an area heavily defended by antiaircraft artillery and surface-to-air missiles, with the mission of locating and destroying the missile installations. He planned the attack route and led the eight- plane group over more than six hundred miles of unfamiliar, cloud-shrouded, mountainous terrain, arriving in the target area precisely at a prebriefed time that had been selected to coincide with the strikes of two carrier air wings against a bridge. The target area was the scene of an intense air-to-ground battle, many surface-to-air missiles were being fired and heavy enemy antiaircraft fire was observed in all directions. With full knowledge of the serious hazards involved, Captain Powers courageously led the Air Force aircraft into battle. His bombs and those of the Air Force aircraft which he led inflicted severe damage to both missile sites. By his superior aeronautical skill and valiant determination, Captain Powers upheld the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service. Home Town: Minneapolis, Minnesota |