CAPT Ronald Wayne Forrester, Odessa, TX on www.VirtualWall.org The Virtual Wall® Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall

9 February 2024

Captain Ralph J. Chipman, pilot, and 1Lt Ronald W. Forrester, bombardier-navigator, took their A-6A INTRUDER into North Vietnam on December 27, 1972. The last contact was made with the crew over the target area; the aircraft did not return from the mission.

A subsequent article in Quan Doi Nhan Dan, a daily Vietnamese newspaper, described an aircraft downed by the Vietnamese. Apparently the pilot was reported to be dead, and possibly the co-pilot as well. Although this article was thought to possibly relate to Chipman and Forrester, it was not definite enough for proof of death. Both men were classified Missing in Action. Neither had returned until now.

Here is what the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) has posted: Captain Forrester entered the U.S. Marine Corps from Texas and was a member of the Marine All-Weather Attack Squadron 533, Marine Air Group 15, 1st Marine Air Wing. On December 27, 1972, he was the bombardier/navigator aboard an A-6A Intruder (bureau number 155666, call sign "Tiny 05") which took off from Royal Thai Air Base Nam Phong, Khon Kaen Province, Thailand, carrying two crew members on a night combat mission over North Vietnam. The Intruder was last heard from when an airborne controller received a radio transmission indicating "Tiny 05" was beginning its entry into the target area. No subsequent radio contact was made, and an aerial search conducted over the area was unsuccessful in locating the aircraft or crew. In September 1978, the Marine Corps changed Capt Forrester's status from Missing in Action to Killed in Action. Investigations following the incident continued for decades, with investigators eventually discovering remains and material evidence which are believed to be associated with Capt Forrester and the other aviator in the area of the crash site.

Captain Forrester is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. His name is also inscribed along with all his fallen comrades on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, DC.

Ron and his twin brother Don were born March 15, 1947 to Neva Dean "Mamaw" (DeMoss) Forrester (1925-2010) and William Wayne Forrester (1923-2007).

Wayne Forrester served in the U.S. Army in World War II and was part of the D-Day invasion and followed General Patton across Europe. He moved his family to Odessa, TX in 1947 to raise the family. He spent 20 years working for Ector County Roads & Bridges and retired in 1988.

They were married in January 1970 while he was still at Texas A&M. On December 27, 1972 he went Missing in Action and remained in that status until 2023.

Ron's classmates sponsored, designed, & funded a Vietnam Era '69 Memorial to memorialize Ron & 10 additional classmates. The Memorial is located on the Texas A&M University campus

He has an "In Memory Of Marker" in Arlington National Cemetery.

On August 2, 2023, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) identified the remains of Captain Ralph Jim Chipman, Ron's pilot.

Press Release | Dec. 7, 2023

Marine Accounted for from Vietnam (Forrester, R.)

WASHINGTON -

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced that U.S. Marine Corps Capt. Ronald W. Forrester, lost during the Vietnam War, was accounted for Dec. 4, 2023.

In the winter of 1972, Forrester was assigned to Marine All-Weather Attack Squadron 533, Marine Attack Group 12, 1st Marine Air Wing. On Dec. 27, Forrester was the navigator of an A-6A Intruder, along with his pilot, during a nighttime combat mission over the northern part of the Democratic Republic of (North) Vietnam. After entering the target area, Forrester's aircraft ceased radio communications and never returned to base. Search and rescue teams could not locate any trace of the aircraft or the crew in the Le Thuy District, Quang Binh Province. In September 1978, the Marine Corps changed Capt. Forrester's initial Missing In Action status to Killed in Action.

The Latest information pertaining to Capt. Forrester's story ... from TV station in Odessa, Texas (his hometown) that was broadcast the first week of December 2023. Includes interviews with his twin brother Don and his daughter Karoni.

Link to February 3, 2024 celebration of life at Lake Travis United Methodist Church reproduced in it's entirety.

Karoni Forrester speaks at the celebration of life for her father, U.S. Marine Corps Capt. Ronald Forrester, at Lake Travis United Methodist Church on Feb. 3, 2024. Ronald Forrester was listed as missing in action when his plane crashed during a combat mission in the Vietnam War in 1972. His remains were identified through DNA testing last year. Racardo D. Davis/Texas A&M Division of Marketing and Communications

An Aggie who was killed during the Vietnam War was officially welcomed home last week in a celebration that drew hundreds of family and friends, Texas A&M classmates, fellow veterans and supporters from around the country.

U.S. Marine Corps Capt. Ronald Forrester '69 was 25 when his plane crashed during a combat mission in North Vietnam in December 1972. Forrester, who was serving as the navigator, and the plane's pilot, Capt. Jim Chipman, were listed as missing in action.

This past December, 51 years after their plane went down, the military announced the remains of both men had been accounted for after DNA testing of teeth and bone fragments recovered during excavations of the crash site.

On Saturday, in a crowded church outside of Austin, the senior boots Forrester wore as a cadet stood in front of the lectern as his loved ones recalled how his determination and a call to service led him from Odessa to Texas A&M University's Corps of Cadets before being commissioned as an officer into the Marine Corps.

The boots worn by Ronald Forrester during his senior year in Texas A&M University's Corps of Cadets stand before a lectern during a celebration of his life at Lake Travis United Methodist Church on Feb. 3, 2024.

Saturday's service had a distinct Aggie flavor, with a bit of whooping mixed in with the tears and laughter drawn from recollections of Forrester's life. The celebration included a Texas A&M color guard, a reading of The Last Corps Trip and the singing of the Aggie War Hymn. Members of the Ross Volunteers conducted a rifle volley, a pair of cadet buglers performed Echo Taps, and The Association of Former Students presented a Texas A&M flag to Forrester's daughter, Karoni Forrester '96, who was 2 years old when her father died.

Texas A&M University President Mark A. Welsh III and former Texas Gov. Rick Perry '72 were in attendance.

Karoni Forrester, who has dedicated much of her life to advocating for prisoners of war and those missing in action, said her family's story offers hope for families grappling with the uncertainty surrounding their missing loved ones.

"We stand with you until it's your family's turn," she said. "It's going to be your turn."

Forrester acknowledged the many veterans service organizations, government agencies, MIA advocates and supporters who helped in the search for her father. She said the relationships formed over the years brought comfort and lifelong bonds.

"We didn't walk this path alone. If it weren't for the love and support of our family and friends, our sad days would have been a lot sadder," she said.

Forrester said she was especially grateful to the excavation team members who uncovered the pair's remains, motivating themselves through the intense Vietnam heat by repeating their names.

"On behalf of everyone in this room, thank you for finding my dad," she said.

Lilian Gonzales speaks during the celebration of life service for her grandfather, U.S. Marine Corps Capt. Ronald Forrester. The remains of Forrester, an Aggie who was killed during the Vietnam War, were recently identified through DNA testing.

The Ripple Effects Of A Life Well-Lived

Several people who didn't know Forrester personally spoke of the impact he had on them.

Craig Forrester '94 said his uncle has been his hero his whole life.

"Though I have no memories of him that are my own, the man that he was, shared with me through the memories of others, had a tremendous impact on the man that I've become and the man that I continue to strive to be," he said.

Photos, medals and mementos belonging to Ronald Forrester sit on a table at Lake Travis United Methodist Church during a celebration of his life. Forrester was listed as missing in action after his plane crashed during the Vietnam War. His remains were identified last year through DNA testing.

Forrester followed his uncle's path to Texas A&M, the Corps of Cadets and the Marine Corps. He said his time at Texas A&M was life-changing and gave him a connection to the uncle he never met.

Forrester, who wore his uncle's boots during his senior year at A&M, said that bond with his uncle helped him make it through the Corps.

"When I got there, I had no choice but to succeed. There was no way that I was going to tarnish his memory, his legacy, by not seeing it through," he said. "When times were the toughest, I just reminded myself that my Uncle Ronnie had already been through all of this. I was Ron Forrester's nephew. I'd muster up the grit to see it through as well."

That bond continued throughout his time in the Marine Corps, including multiple deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"I always had the assurance that my Uncle Ronnie had already blazed a trail for me," he said. "I am privileged to be Ron Forrester's nephew, and I am honored that his legacy lives on through me."

Karoni Forrester's daughter, Lilian Gonzales, said she learned about her grandfather from the stories of others and the letters he wrote home. She said she has attended POW-MIA family meetings and advocacy events since she was a baby and doesn't remember not being immersed in the efforts to bring him home.

"I can honestly say that though I never met him, I wouldn't be who I am without him," Gonzales said, noting an abundance of love and support from the people surrounding her because of Forrester's absence.

"My grandpa and his story matter," Gonzales said. "He is not forgotten."

Darrell Boethel '69, didn't know Forrester personally, but said after the service that he felt it was important for him to travel from his home in Houston to attend.

"I think I speak for all of us," Boethel said, referring to about a dozen Class of '69 members at the service. "There's no way we'd miss it."

Boethel, who was also a member of the Corps of Cadets during his time at A&M, said the packed church reminded him what it means to be part of the Aggie family.

"One of the greatest gifts I've had was to go to A&M," he said. "This has really resurrected that for me."

Continuing The Mission

John Pitre '24, a member of Squadron 21 in Texas A&M's Corps of Cadets, met Karoni Forrester prior to her father's remains being identified.

Squadron 21 has adopted prisoner-of-war and missing-in-action advocacy as a cause for the unit and invited Forrester to campus to share her father's story. Members of the unit wear bracelets in recognition of U.S. Air Force 1st Lt. Victor Hugo Thompson III '64, who was killed in Vietnam when his plane crashed during a combat mission in 1967. His remains were recovered in 1973 and identified in 1974.

Pitre said Saturday's celebration with the Forrester family was especially meaningful.

"It's an honor to be able to represent the A&M side of his life as part of the Aggie family," he said. "To see the story come full circle and get some closure for the family is special."

Gonzales said the family is blessed to have answers after all these years, but the identification of her grandfather's remains isn't the end of the story.

With 1,577 U.S. service members still unaccounted for in Southeast Asia, there is more to do, she said.

"Remember Ronald Wayne Forrester. Remember his story and all that he gave. Remember he was missing. Remember he was found. Remember there are 1,577 families just like ours who are still waiting for their answers," she said. "Continue the mission to bring them all home."

Forrester's remains will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery later this year. Remains recovered from the crash site that couldn't be identified as belonging to either Forrester or Chipman will be buried together at the cemetery with a tombstone bearing both of their names.

Karoni Forrester speaks suring the celebration of life service for her father, Capt Ronald Wayne Forrester, who died in Vietnam during that war.

The family is planning a burial in Arlington National Cemetery later in 2024. On her facebook page are her comments about her father's recovery and family photos, the comments part of which are:

"Daddy wanted to be laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery and already has a Memorial headstone there. We will be working through details to plan his funeral, though waiting time for a funeral at Arlington can be upwards of six months. In the meantime, his brothers and I will be planning a Celebration of Life/Celebration for Answers in the Austin area early in the new year for Dad's Texas family and friends (and our friends too!). I always love a good Ron Forrester story, and I want to hear many that day! Uncle Don wants to have it sooner than later, on the heels of us finally getting the long awaited answer. More details to come."

Plenty of photos of Capt Ron Forrester.

- - The Virtual Wall, 10 February 2024