Raphael Cruz

Vietnam War
Unit1st Air Commando Squadron, Pleiku
RankStaff Sergeant U.S. Air Force
Entered Service FromStockton California
Date of DeathSeptember 2 1963
StatusRecovered
Memorialized
Courts of the Missing
Court
A
Notes
Staff Sergeant Cruz was a member of the 1st Air Commando Squadron, Pleiku, South Vietnam. On September 2, 1963, he was a crew member of a Douglas Invader Bomber (B-26B) on a mission over South Vietnam when radio contact was lost. His remains were recovered on March 27, 1992 and identified on October 10, 1996. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.
rosetta medal
When an individual’s remains have been accounted for by the U.S. Department of Defense, a rosette is placed next to the name on the Wall/Tablet/Court of the Missing to mark that the person now rests in a known gravesite.