RONALD L. BOND
Home Of Record:
HADDONFIELD
County:
Camden
Status:
Missing In Action
Rank:
CAPT
Branch Of Service:
Air Force
Country Of Incident:
LAOS
Date of Casualty:
September 30, 1971
Date of Birth:
December 14, 1947

7th AF
366th TFW
  421st TFS
 

CAPT - O3 - Air Force - Regular His tour began on Sep 30, 1971 Casualty was on Feb 6, 1979 In LZ, LAOS Hostile, died while missing, FIXED WING - CREW AIR LOSS, CRASH ON LAND Body was not recovered Panel 02W - Line 31 The Coffelt Database - Records with Unit Information on Military Personnel Who Died During the Vietnam War - Click here to view File

Ronald Leslie Bond was born in Camden, NJ, on December 14, 1947. His home of record is Haddonfield, NJ, where he grew up. At the age of 12, Ron was on the Haddonfield Little League Team that went to the state finals. In the same year he was Middle Atlantic AAU, 12 and under diving champion and a Tri-County swimming and diving champion. In his high school years at Haddonfield Memorial High School, he was wrestling champion in his weight class. When Ron graduated from high school in 1965, he was accepted at the University of Delaware, but was also granted an appointment to the US Air Force Academy, which he accepted.

His first assignment after graduating from the Academy in 1969, was Navigator School, then training to be the “guy in back” in the F-4 Fighter Bomber, then an unexpected (and unwanted) assignment to South Korea. Ron did everything he could think of to get a Vietnam assignment, and the orders to go to Vietnam came while he was home just prior to leaving for Korea. His unit was the 390th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Danang Air Base, South Vietnam. With his heavy clothes on their way to Korea and his lighter clothes shipped home to Haddonfield, NJ, he left for Danang, South Vietnam, arriving there February 6, 1971.

Ron was home again in July 1971. He was on R & R, but had come home to be fitted with contact lenses so he could become a pilot. When Ron came stateside in July, one of his concerns was what his father might want for Christmas.

Shortly after his return to Danang, Ron began flying Forward Air Controller reconnaissance missions. He was attached to the 390th Tactical Fighter Squadron and had attained the rank of Captain (CAPT).

On September 30, 1971, he flew on an operational mission as the “guy in back” for Captain Michael L. Donovan’s F-4E. The pair were on their last leg of their mission. They had met up twice with the KC-135 (for fuel). The aircraft failed to return to Danang, and after an extensive search the two men were declared, “missing in action” at the time of estimated fuel exhaustion. Ron was on his 150th mission in 222 days. They were short of navigators and he took every opportunity to fly even with squadrons other than his own.

Captain Bond’s status remained “missing in action” until February 6, 1979, when his status was administratively changed to “killed in action”. Since his remains have yet to be recovered and returned, he is listed by the Department of Defense as unaccounted for in Southeast Asia.

Bond was awarded the Air Medal with eight oak leaf clusters (which means it was awarded nine times). He was also awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross with two oak leaf clusters (that means it was awarded three times).

Sources: POW Network and NJVVMF

http://theodoresworld.net/pages/ronald_leslie_bond.htm
Name: Ronald Leslie Bond
Rank/Branch: 03/US Air Force
Unit: 390th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Da Nang, South Vietnam
Date of Birth: 14 December 1947
Home City of Record: Haddonfield CT
Date of Loss: 30 September 1971
Country of Loss: Laos
Loss Coordinates: 160500N 1063300E (XD619099)
Status (In 1973): Missing In Action
Category: 4
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: F4E
Other Personnel in Incident:
Michael L. Donovan (missing)

Source:
Compiled by Homecoming II Project 31 April 1990 from
one or more of the following: raw data from
U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with
POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews.

REMARKS:

SYNOPSIS:
Michael L. Donovan was born November 9, 1944
in Huntington Park, California. His family later moved
to Norton, Kansas, where he graduated from Norton
Community High School in 1962. He was married before
entering Fort Hays State College where he graduated
in 1966 with a degree in Agriculture.

In the summer of 1966, Mike entered the Air Force and
was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant. He received
training in Texas and Florida and in 1968 became a pilot
of the F-4 Phantom jet. Mike was promoted to Captain
while serving an overseas tour in Japan.

In January, 1971, Mike left for his last assignment in
South Vietnam, and was stationed at Da Nang Airfield
with the 421st Tactical Fighter Squadron.

Ronald L. Bond was born in Camden, New Jersey on
December 14, 1947. He grew up in Haddonfield, New Jersey.
At the age of 12, Ron was on the Haddonfield Little League
team that went to the New Jersey finals.
In that same year he was Middle Atlantic AAU, 12 and
under Diving Champion and a tri-county swimming and
diving champion. In his high school years at Haddonfield
Memorial High School, he was wrestling champion in his
weight class. When Ron graduated from high school in 1965,
he was accepted at the University of Delaware, but was also
granted an appointment to the Air Force Academy, which he accepted.

His first assignment after graduating from the Academy in 1969
was navigator school, then training to be "Guy in Back" in the
F4 fighter bomber, then an unexpected (and unwanted)
assignment to South Korea. Ron did everything he could think
of to get a Vietnam assignment, and the orders to go to Vietnam
came while he was home just prior to leaving for Korea.
With his heavy clothes on their way to Korea and his lighter clothes
shipped home to Haddonfield, he left for Da Nang,
South Vietnam, arriving there February 6, 1971.

Ron was home again in July, 1971. He was on R & R,
but had come home to be fitted with contact lenses so
that he could become a pilot. Shortly after his return to
Da Nang, Ron began flying Forward Air Controller
reconnaissance missions. He was attached to the
390th Tactical Fighter Squadron.

On September 30, 1971, Donovan and Bond teamed
up on an operational mission over Laos. On the mission,
Donovan was the pilot and Bond the "Guy in Back" (navigator).
The pair were on the last leg of their mission having mated up
twice with a KC135 (for fuel). The aircraft failed to return on
schedule to Da Nang, and after an extensive search, the
two men were declared Missing In Action.

Bond and Donovan are two of the nearly 600 men missing
in action over Laos. The poorly-negotiated Paris Peace
Agreement ending American involvement in Southeast Asia
did not address the prisoners of war and missing held in Laos,
and no subsequent negotiations ever held to secure their freedom.
As a result, even though the Pathet Lao stated publicly that they
held "tens of tens" of American prisoners, not one man held
in Laos was released.

Ronald Bond's parents moved to California about a
year after his disappearance and remain active in their
search for information about their son. They feel there
is a possibility their son could be alive and a prisoner.
They believe some, perhaps many, Americans are still
alive and held prisoner in Southeast Asia. They will not
rest until these men are returned and they know the fate of their son.

In late 1998, Errol Bond was still attempting to get
documents on his sons fate. The incidents' "CHECO"
report was to remain classified until 2003 he was told.
Fingerprints had long since been destroyed from files -
although footprints had been saved
("the boots are the last to burn...." he was told).
Classmates of his son help keep the memories alive.
Questions remain, answers are still sought -
peace within, is still elusive.


Los Angeles Times July 31,1991
By Karen Tumulty and Dan Weikel
MIA: Distrustful Families Keeping Alive
the Issue of Missing Americans.
Prisoners of Not Knowing
The issue of MIAs and POWs in Southeast Asia
has been called a top priorities.But frustrated
families of the missing all of government errors
and misrepresentations.....

When records have been declassified,
families have often been horrified by
what they discovered. Errol and
Madeline Bond of Fullerton, Calif, twice
traveled to the military's Joint Casualty
Resolution Center in Hawaii to review what
they believed were all the records relating
to the 1971 disappearance of their son,
Air Force Capt. Ronald L. Bond, a
bombardier-navigator.
That file contained little more than the
date on which Bond was shot down, his
personnel records and other routine papers.
Yet when further information was declassified
later, his parents learned there was much that
they had not seen -- including evidence that
beeper signals and coded messages picked up by
search and rescue planes near the crash site of their
son's F-4E Phantom showed that he had bailed out successfully.
That same record indicated that an investigation
was under way, but the Bonds have never seen the
results. "Nice of them to declassify a letter
they said they never had," Errol Bond said.
"We have not received anything
since, but our son has not been proven dead."
Virtually all the missing were declared
presumed dead in the late 1970s, as part
of President Jimmy Carter's effort to
normalize relations with Vietnam.
 

MESSAGES LEFT ON THEWALL-USA (as of 2/28/09)

** Note that some of these messages are from years ago and there contact information may not be good anymore **

sharon wieber
Bravo66@aol.com
from same town - vietnam same time
box1243
lake park, ga 31636 USA
Yearly visits
Every year I visit the wall usually on your casualty date. since the walls dedication i have written you a yearly up date on my life. with the hopes that some day you will come home and read them, ronnie. About 8 years ago your mom gave me another bracelet with your name on it, this one has your pictureI wear them both. Everytime I go home I visit the town memorial and place some flowers there for you Ronnie you are deeply missed I hope some day you can come home
Thursday, May 18, 2000

Denise Bryant
bryant@pvtnetworks.net
I wore his POW/MIA bracelet in the 70s
I am overwhelmed with emotion ~ I just didn't want this hero's comment section to be empty. I wore his POW/MIA bracelet in the 70s. I feel somehow tied to him, and I wanted anybody who reads this to know that this hero is not forgotten by the young girl who prayed for this young man and still thinks about him and his family. My heart will always hold a place for him. I would love to make contact with anyone who knew Capt. Ronald L. Bond. (My bracelet says Lt. Ronald L. Bond ~ 9/30/71.) I don't know what else to say ~ so I'll leave with the song "(You are the) Wind Beneath My Wings". Ronald, did you ever know that you're my hero?
Wednesday, August 18, 1999


Ken Hampton
manders2@aisd.net
Mr. Anderson's History Student
Sam Houston High School, 2000 Sam Houston Dr.
Arlington, TX 76014 USA
My Adopted MIA
Capt. Ronald L. Bond, My name is Ken Hampton.I'm a 2005 Junior at Sam Houston High School in Arlington, TX. As part of a class assignment on Vietnam MIA's, I learned your story and shared it with my classmates. I learned of your sacrifice and will remember you.
Wednesday, May 11, 2005


Carl M. Ostergaard, Jr.
carl.2.ostergaard@aexp.com
I wear his bracelet
26-54 29th Street, #1c
Astoria, New York 11102 USA
Not Forgotten
I bought Ronald Bond's bracelet at the Viet Nam Veteran's Memorial in 1994. It was a plesant surprise to see that he was from my home state of NJ. I have worn his bracelet every day since 1994 and visited him at the VVM and at the Air Force Academy where his name is listed among those graduates killed and missing at the Air Force Academy Chapel. Thanks to the wonder of the internet, I have also contacted his parents to remind them that there are millions of us who have not forgotten our Viet Nam veterans and thousands of us who have not forgotten Ronald Bond in particular.
Wednesday, June 01, 2005



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