STRONG-HENRY

KILLED  IN  ACTION  -  NORTH  VIETNAM  -  5/25/1972

CDR Henry Hooker Strong Jr was the commanding officer of Attack Squadron Two-Hundred Twelve (VA-212).  On May 25, 1972, he was the pilot of a single-seat A-4F Skyhawk (bureau number 155045) aircraft that departed the carrier USS Hancock (CV-19) as the lead in a thirty-plane flight on a strike mission against enemy targets in North Vietnam.  The aircraft were unable to proceed to the primary target because of adverse weather so CDR Strong diverted the flight to their secondary target, a highway bridge and military storage complex.  Once on target, CDR Strong called “Rolling in” and proceeded to lead the attack on the bridge.  His Skyhawk was then hit by intense antiaircraft fire.  Radio contact with him was lost and no ejection from the aircraft was observed nor was a parachute seen as the plane crashed.  As the target was deep inside enemy territory a search and rescue mission was impossible.  In view of the circumstances CDR Strong was declared missing in action and his remains have never been recovered.  CDR Strong’s aircraft was the only aircraft that failed to return from the mission.

Strong entered the Navy from Pennsylvania and was promoted to the rank of Captain during the period he was maintained as missing.  He was survived by his wife and two children.  A memorial marker for CAPT Strong is located at the Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia and his name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Missing in Honolulu, Hawaii.

The USS Midway Museum in San Diego has a A-4 Skyhawk on exhibit with complete VA-212 markings.  In early 2024, CAPT Strong’s name was painted under the cockpit on the port side.

                

Submitted by CDR Roy A. Mosteller, USNR (Ret)