MASSUCCI, MARTIN JOHN

Name: Martin John Massucci
Rank/Branch: O2/US Air Force
Unit:
Date of Birth: 01 November 1939
Home City of Record: Royal Oak MI
Date of Loss: 01 October 1965
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 211000N 1043900E (VJ730340)
Status (in 1973): Missing In Action
Category: 2
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: F4C
Refno: 0158
Other Personnel In Incident: Charles J. Scharf (missing)

Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project 15 October 1990 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 1998.

REMARKS:

SYNOPSIS: The Phantom, used by Air Force, Marine and Navy air wings, served
a multitude of functions including fighter-bomber and interceptor, photo and
electronic surveillance. The two man aircraft was extremely fast (Mach 2),
and had a long range (900 - 2300 miles, depending on stores and mission
type). The F4 was also extremely maneuverable and handled well at low and
high altitudes. Most pilots considered it one of the "hottest" planes
around.

On October 1, 1965, Capt. Charles J. Scharf was the pilot of the lead
aircraft in a flight of four F4C fighter jets assigned a road reconnaissance
mission about 79 miles west-northwest of Hanoi, 15 kilometers from the
border of China, near Ban Puoi Airfield. Scharf's bombardier/navigator was
1Lt. Martin J. Massucci.

During the mission, Scharf radioed that he was hit and was bailing out. One
parachute was seen and the plane remained airborne for about 30 seconds
prior to impact. Chuck and his backseater were both reported missing in
action.

CIA reported to Scharf's family that he was mentioned in the 1967 East
German film, "Pilots in Pajamas," but Defense Intelligence stated that the
photo did not correlate with the name. Chuck's family has viewed 6 hours of
the 8 hour film. Segments of "Pilots in Pajamas" were used in Sylvester
Stallone's documentary, "MIAs, Where Are They?" Barbara Lowerison, Scharf's
sister, says, "When I saw the documentary, there were scenes which led me to
believe that Chuck was in that film. I would bet my life on it!"

Lowerison says, "I, as a sister cannot and will not give up hope. I strongly
believe that we do have live men detained against their will in Communist
controlled environments. I urge our government to pursue the release of each
and every one of these men and to urge the release of all remains. It is the
legal and moral responsibility of the U.S. Government to protect and stand
up for American fighting men."

Charles J. Scharf was promoted to the rank of Colonel and Martin J. Massucci
to the rank of Major during the period they were maintained missing in
action.

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