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JAMES HENRY MCLEAN
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Name: James Henry McLean
Rank/Branch: E4/US
Army
Unit: Medic assigned to Advisory Team 88, MAC-V
Date of
Birth: 16 June 1944
Home City of Record: Los Angeles CA
Date of
Loss: 09 February 1965
Country of Loss: South Vietnam
Loss
Coordinates: 114847N 1071522E
Status (in 1973): Prisoner of
War
Category: 1
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: Ground
Other Personnel
In Incident: none missing
REMARKS: CAPTURE CONF BY VIET PWS
Source: Compiled by from one or more of
the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources,
correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews.
Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK.
SYNOPSIS: SP4 James H. McLean was a medic
assigned to Advisory Team 88, MAC-V, serving with a South Vietnamese
Regional Forces unit at Duc Phong, Phuoc Long Province, Republic of
Vietnam. On February 9, 1965, at about midnight, Duc Phong came
under attack and was seized by the Viet Cong.
The following day, an ARVN unit was inserted
into the area, and learned that an American had been observed being held
captive in the vicinity of Duc Phong. Enemy fire drove observing
helicopters away. By mid-afternoon on February 10, the ARVN unit
that had been inserted had recaptured the camp and recovered the remains
of 3 American advisors. As none of them was McLean, it was
determined that the captured American was McLean.
Several released and escaped South Vietnamese
captured in the same incident or held in various camps with McLean later
reported that SP4 McLean had been captured uninjured. He was last
seen alive in late 1966, having detained all this time in camps in
northern Phuoc Long Province.
Although one of the released POWs stated that he
had seen McLean sick and then never saw him again, McLean's name never
appeared on lists provided which named those who died in captivity.
He was not released in 1973 in the general prisoner release.
McLean is one of nearly 2500 Americans who
remain prisoner, missing or otherwise unaccounted for in Southeast
Asia. There can be no question that the Vietnamese know his
fate. With thousands of reports being received relating to Americans
still held prisoner, one has to wonder if McLean is one of those that
experts believe are still alive. If he is, what must he be thinking
of us?
UPDATED 01/06/96, extracted from the
newsletter by: NATIONAL ALLIANCE OF FAMILIES FOR THE RETURN OF AMERICA'S
MISSING SERVICEMEN WORLD WAR II - KOREA - COLD WAR -VIETNAM
DOLORES ALFOND - VOICE/FAX - (206)
881-1499
LYNN O'SHEA
---- VOICE/FAX - (718) 846-4350 BITS 'N'
PIECES
JANUARY 6, 1996
IN OUR OCTOBER 7TH EDITION WE DISCUSSED PROJECT
X. WE HAVE HEARD FROM SIX FAMILIES WHO WERE UNAWARE OF THE EXISTENCE
OF "PROJECT X" AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO THEIR LOVED ONES CASES. NO
"PROJECT X" INFORMATION WAS EVER PROVIDED TO THESE FAMILIES AND NO
"PROJECT X" INFORMATION WAS CONTAINED IN CASUALTY FILES REVIEWED BY THESE
FAMILIES. THE OBVIOUS QUESTION -- WHAT ELSE IS OUT THERE THAT
THE FAMILIES DON'T KNOW ABOUT?
ONE OF THE "PROJECT X" CASES IS JAMES MC LEAN,
CONFIRMED CAPTURED. WE DECIDED TO LOOK AT THE CASE OF JAMES MC
LEAN TO SEE WHAT INFORMATION WAS AVAILABLE. HERE BASED ON OUR
LIMITED EFFORTS AND RESOURCES IS WHAT WE HAVE ON JAMES MC LEAN.
THE FOLLOWING IS FROM THE "PROJECT X"
REPORT: "RATIONAL FOR SELECTION: THERE ARE REPORTS THAT SP4 MC LEAN
WAS CAPTURED ALIVE AND UNINJURED, AND NUMEROUS LATER REPORTS IDENTIFIED
HIM AS A PRISONER OF WAR. NO REPORTS OF DEATH HAVE BEEN RECEIVED
SUBSEQUENT TO THESE SIGHTINGS."
SUMMARY OF PROJECT X SUMMARY: A:
VIETNAMESE CAPTURED IN SAME INCIDENT AND RELEASED 27 MARCH 1965
REPORTED AT TIME OF CAPTURE MC LEAN "HAD NOT BEEN
WOUNDED."
B: IN JUNE 1965 - AN ARVN RANGER HELD BY
THE VC FROM 11 MAY 1965 TO 9 JUNE 1965 REPORTED SEEING MC LEAN IN
THE SAME CAMP.
C: AUGUST 1966 - A MONTANARD CAPTURED IN
AUGUST 1965 AND ESCAPED SOMETIME IN MAY OR EARLY JUNE 1966 STATED HE
MET MC LEAN AND WAS GIVEN THE DUTY OF CARING FOR HIM. MC LEAN
WAS ILL WITH DIARRHEA AND MALARIA. THE MONTANARD STAYED AT THE
CAMP TWO MONTHS
D: TWO ARVN RELEASED IN SEPT 1965 STATED
THEY WERE HELD WITH A PW BELIEVED TO BE MC LEAN. E: 20
OCT. 1966 - AN ARVN INTELLIGENCE AGENT REPORTED THAT HE SAW
AN AMERICAN PW AT (GC) YU 336 155. THE AMERICAN IS BELIEVED TO
BE MC LEAN.
AFTER REVIEWING PROJECT X WE WONDERED -- WHAT ELSE
IS OUT THERE ON JAMES MCLEAN? WE FOUND THAT THE INFORMATION ON JAMES
MC LEAN IS CONTAINED IN EACH OF THE DOCUMENTS OR LISTS MENTIONED
BELOW. HERE BASED ON OUR LIMITED EFFORTS AND RESOURCES IS WHAT WE
HAVE ON JAMES MC LEAN.
JANUARY 1973 - KISSINGER LIST APRIL 18,
1973 - DEPT. OF ARMY MEMO -SUBJ: PW OF WHOM PRG/DRV SHOULD
HAVE KNOWLEDGE JUNE 1973 - LIST OF 67 - "HOSTILE CAPTURED"
JULY 3, 1973 - MEMO TO CHIEF US DELEGATION FOUR PARTY JOINT
MILITARY TEAM (FPJMT) - PROBABLY CAPTURED - "LAST SEEN AS AN
ADVISOR WHEN CAMP WAS OVER RAN. IDENT AS PW BY COMPARISON OF
PHOTOS FURNISHED BY FAMILY WITH SOME CAPTURED PHOTOS." JULY 14, 1973
- MEMO U.S. PERSONNEL BELIEVED TO BE IN A CAPTURED STATUS -
SVN PROBABLY CAPTURED - "LAST SEEN ON DUTY AS AN ADVISOR WHEN HIS
STATIONS WAS OVERRUN BY A HOSTILE FORCE. HIS FAMILY POSITIVELY
IDENTIFIED SOME CAPTURED PHOTOS AS BEING SUBJECT. PHOTOS
INDICATE SUBJECT WAS PW OF VC. DIA 1979 LIST - CAPTURE CONFIRMED
DISCREPANCY CASE ORIGINAL 119 JAN. 22, 1992 JCRC MEMO - SUBJ: STORED
REMAINS - VIETNAM (THIS RELATED ONLY TO THE 119 DISCREPANCY CASE
LIST) SECTION: C: ALL OTHER INDIVIDUALS. VESSEY 135 DISCREPANCY LIST
55 DISCREPANCY CASE LIST AS OF FEB. 17, 1995
VIETNAM, YOU CAPTURED JAMES MC LEAN. YOU
HELD HIM AS PRISONER OF WAR. WHERE IS JAMES MC
CLEAN?
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