Merwin Lamphrey Morrill was a career U.S. Air Force officer. He was a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point (Class of 1958), where, prior to graduation, he met his future wife, Constance. They were married following his graduation in June of 1958, and had a son, Todd, in 1963.
He entered the Air Force, and became a pilot, attaining the rank of Captain. He and his family were eventually sent to Okinawa., where in 1967, he was asked to take a two-month tour of duty in Vietnam. As his brother, Lt. Col. David Morrill, a Marine Corps pilot, had been killed in March when his F4 Phantom was shot down, Captain Morrill could have declined and his family urged him to do so. However, he felt it was his duty and that he had trained all his life for this purpose. He accepted and deployed for Southeast Asia on July 16, 1967, his son's fourth birthday.
On August 21, 1967, attached to the 67th Tactical Fighter Squadron and flying on a strike against the Yen Vien rail yard six miles northeast of Hanoi, his F-105D Thunderchief fighter-bomber was hit by a surface-to-air missile and crashed. Although both his location beeper and that of his wingman activated on the ground, suggesting they had successfully ejected, no other evidence of survival materialized. His wife maintained hope that he was a prisoner of war, but after repatriation in 1973, released PoWs told her his name never came up in the network the prisoners maintained while in captivity. Thus, Captain Morrill was believed to have been killed, but in the absence of confirmation, he was instead listed as missing in action.
During the time he was missing in action, Captain Morrill was promoted along with his class to Major and then Lieutenant Colonel. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star, Air Medal (First and Second Oak Leaf Clusters) and the Purple Heart. In April of 1978, his status was changed to killed in action/body not recovered. In June 1983, his remains were finally recovered, repatriated, and identified, bringing closure to his wife and family.
His funeral was held in August 1983, and his remains buried in the cemetery of his alma mater, West Point. He is also listed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall (Panel 25E, Line 024), and the Courts of the Missing, Honolulu Memorial, National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
He entered the Air Force, and became a pilot, attaining the rank of Captain. He and his family were eventually sent to Okinawa., where in 1967, he was asked to take a two-month tour of duty in Vietnam. As his brother, Lt. Col. David Morrill, a Marine Corps pilot, had been killed in March when his F4 Phantom was shot down, Captain Morrill could have declined and his family urged him to do so. However, he felt it was his duty and that he had trained all his life for this purpose. He accepted and deployed for Southeast Asia on July 16, 1967, his son's fourth birthday.
On August 21, 1967, attached to the 67th Tactical Fighter Squadron and flying on a strike against the Yen Vien rail yard six miles northeast of Hanoi, his F-105D Thunderchief fighter-bomber was hit by a surface-to-air missile and crashed. Although both his location beeper and that of his wingman activated on the ground, suggesting they had successfully ejected, no other evidence of survival materialized. His wife maintained hope that he was a prisoner of war, but after repatriation in 1973, released PoWs told her his name never came up in the network the prisoners maintained while in captivity. Thus, Captain Morrill was believed to have been killed, but in the absence of confirmation, he was instead listed as missing in action.
During the time he was missing in action, Captain Morrill was promoted along with his class to Major and then Lieutenant Colonel. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star, Air Medal (First and Second Oak Leaf Clusters) and the Purple Heart. In April of 1978, his status was changed to killed in action/body not recovered. In June 1983, his remains were finally recovered, repatriated, and identified, bringing closure to his wife and family.
His funeral was held in August 1983, and his remains buried in the cemetery of his alma mater, West Point. He is also listed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall (Panel 25E, Line 024), and the Courts of the Missing, Honolulu Memorial, National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Merwin Lamphrey Morrill was a career U.S. Air Force officer. He was a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point (Class of 1958), where, prior to graduation, he met his future wife, Constance. They were married following his graduation in June of 1958, and had a son, Todd, in 1963.
He entered the Air Force, and became a pilot, attaining the rank of Captain. He and his family were eventually sent to Okinawa., where in 1967, he was asked to take a two-month tour of duty in Vietnam. As his brother, Lt. Col. David Morrill, a Marine Corps pilot, had been killed in March when his F4 Phantom was shot down, Captain Morrill could have declined and his family urged him to do so. However, he felt it was his duty and that he had trained all his life for this purpose. He accepted and deployed for Southeast Asia on July 16, 1967, his son's fourth birthday.
On August 21, 1967, attached to the 67th Tactical Fighter Squadron and flying on a strike against the Yen Vien rail yard six miles northeast of Hanoi, his F-105D Thunderchief fighter-bomber was hit by a surface-to-air missile and crashed. Although both his location beeper and that of his wingman activated on the ground, suggesting they had successfully ejected, no other evidence of survival materialized. His wife maintained hope that he was a prisoner of war, but after repatriation in 1973, released PoWs told her his name never came up in the network the prisoners maintained while in captivity. Thus, Captain Morrill was believed to have been killed, but in the absence of confirmation, he was instead listed as missing in action.
During the time he was missing in action, Captain Morrill was promoted along with his class to Major and then Lieutenant Colonel. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star, Air Medal (First and Second Oak Leaf Clusters) and the Purple Heart. In April of 1978, his status was changed to killed in action/body not recovered. In June 1983, his remains were finally recovered, repatriated, and identified, bringing closure to his wife and family.
His funeral was held in August 1983, and his remains buried in the cemetery of his alma mater, West Point. He is also listed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall (Panel 25E, Line 024), and the Courts of the Missing, Honolulu Memorial, National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
He entered the Air Force, and became a pilot, attaining the rank of Captain. He and his family were eventually sent to Okinawa., where in 1967, he was asked to take a two-month tour of duty in Vietnam. As his brother, Lt. Col. David Morrill, a Marine Corps pilot, had been killed in March when his F4 Phantom was shot down, Captain Morrill could have declined and his family urged him to do so. However, he felt it was his duty and that he had trained all his life for this purpose. He accepted and deployed for Southeast Asia on July 16, 1967, his son's fourth birthday.
On August 21, 1967, attached to the 67th Tactical Fighter Squadron and flying on a strike against the Yen Vien rail yard six miles northeast of Hanoi, his F-105D Thunderchief fighter-bomber was hit by a surface-to-air missile and crashed. Although both his location beeper and that of his wingman activated on the ground, suggesting they had successfully ejected, no other evidence of survival materialized. His wife maintained hope that he was a prisoner of war, but after repatriation in 1973, released PoWs told her his name never came up in the network the prisoners maintained while in captivity. Thus, Captain Morrill was believed to have been killed, but in the absence of confirmation, he was instead listed as missing in action.
During the time he was missing in action, Captain Morrill was promoted along with his class to Major and then Lieutenant Colonel. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star, Air Medal (First and Second Oak Leaf Clusters) and the Purple Heart. In April of 1978, his status was changed to killed in action/body not recovered. In June 1983, his remains were finally recovered, repatriated, and identified, bringing closure to his wife and family.
His funeral was held in August 1983, and his remains buried in the cemetery of his alma mater, West Point. He is also listed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall (Panel 25E, Line 024), and the Courts of the Missing, Honolulu Memorial, National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
