Hometown: Saginaw, MI
Branch: U.S. Air Force
Unit: 1st Air Commando Squadron, 14th Air Commando Wing, 7th Air Force
Military Honors: Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross with Oak Leaf Cluster, Air Medal with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters, Air Force Commendation Medal, Purple Heart
Date of Sacrifice: June 4, 1967 - KIA over Saravane Province, Laos
Age: 46
Conflict: Vietnam War, 1959-1975

Lewis Merritt Robinson was born on February 1, 1921, and grew up in Saginaw, Michigan. He graduated from the University of Michigan and enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. Robinson married Elizabeth Jean Hoff of Shreveport, Louisiana, and the couple had five children: Scott, Bradley, Gary, William, and Mary Lou.

Robinson made a career of his Air Force commitment, serving for 22 years and attaining the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. According to his son, William, Lewis flew B-29 Superfortress bombers from Guam during World War II (1939-1945).

By the time Lewis Robinson was sent to Vietnam, he was flying a Douglas A-1E Skyraider with the call sign “Hobo 34.” Flying a Skyraider excited Lt. Col. Robinson, according to his son, because, “every pilot wants to be a fighter pilot sometime.”

Robinson was assigned to the 1st Air Commando Squadron, 14th Air Commando Wing, 7th Air Force, and flew counterinsurgency operation missions out of Pleiku Air Base in South Vietnam.

On June 4, 1967, two A-1E Skyraiders took off from Pleiku as part of a close air support mission against enemy targets in Saravane Province, Laos. The #2 plane was piloted by Lt. Col. Robinson.

About 25 miles south of the South Vietnamese city of Khe Sanh, enemy anti-aircraft batteries on the ground opened up and hit the lead plane. Robinson maneuvered below the lead to inspect for damage. Enemy ground fire then struck Robinson’s Skyraider as well, causing it to lurch up.

Some accounts report that Robinson’s plane hit the propeller of the lead aircraft. Others say it struck a wing. Whatever the facts about the collision, Robinson’s plane became impossible to control. He crashed into the jungle and the plane exploded on impact. He never having a chance to eject.

At the time, search and recovery operations were impossible due to a heavy enemy presence in the area. Witnesses had little doubt that he’d died in the explosion. Other pilots in the operation never reported seeing a parachute or hearing emergency beeper signals.

In February 1988, Laotian government officials turned over remains to the U.S. Joint Casualty Resolution Center. Later in November 1993, a joint Laotian/American team traveled to the crash site, interviewed local villagers, surveyed the area, and found skeletal fragments, plane wreckage and other pilot-related equipment. A second joint team excavated the site in January 1998 and recovered more remains and equipment.

By March of 1999, investigators using modern forensic techniques positively identified the remains of Lt. Col. Robinson.

32 years after he gave his life for his country, Lt. Col. Lewis Merritt Robinson was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery (Section 66, Grave 5359) on August 2, 1999. He is honored at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C., where his name is inscribed on Panel 21E, Line 56.

In Honolulu Hawaii, Lt. Col. Robinson’s name is engraved on the American Battle Monument Commission’s “Courts of the Missing,” along with the others who are missing from the Vietnam War. As is the custom, a rosette was placed next to his name to indicate that he has been found.

Sources
Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Wall of Faces: Lewis Merritt Robinson
Arlington National Cemetery: Lewis Merritt Robinson – Colonel, United States Air Force
Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency: Lt. Col. Lewis Merritt Robinson
National Museum of the United States Air Force: Douglas A-1E Skyraider
Together We Served: Robinson, Lewis Merritt, Lt Col
POW Network: Robinson, Lewis Merritt
My Fallen Soldiers: Robinson, Lewis Merritt
Burial Site: Find a Grave