HAIL, WILLIAM WARREN

Name: William Warren Hail
Rank/Branch: O4/United States Air Force
Unit:
Date of Birth: 18 December 1932
Home City of Record: Los Angeles CA
Date of Loss: 02 August 1965
Country of Loss: South Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 160358 North 1080956 East
Status (in 1973): Missing in Action
Category: 4
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: A1H, tail number 132625
Missions: 180
Other Personnel in Incident: none
Incident Number: 0118

Source: Compiled by P.O.W. NETWORK from one or more of the following: raw
data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA
families, published sources, interviews, June 1997.

REMARKS:

Glendale News-Press 1965
GLENDALE PILOT MISSING IN WAR
by Avery Keener
News Press Staff Writer

A Glendale pilot is missing in action in Viet Nam, but his family is
convinced that his training, experience and determination will bring him
safely home.

Capt. William Warren Hail, a jet pilot who has been training Vietnamese to
fly conventional propeller-powered palnes, disappeared Aug. 1, 10 minutes
after take off from Da Nang airport.

NOTHING FOUND

There are no reports of a downed airplane or an injured pilot, and 33 search
parties have found no signs of either.

Capt. Hail, son of Mr. and Mrs. William D. Hail, grew up in Glendale and was
graduated from Glendale High School. He joined the Air Force in 1954 with a
psychology degree from the University of Oregon.

He shunned desk jobs that might have called for a phychologist and chose a
career as a jet pilot.

The 31 year old captain has flown 18 missions and has received a pilot's
medal after every 25. In January he received from Nguyen Kanh, the first of
two Distinguished Cross Medals with gold wings.

He has received U.S. medals, including the Purple Heart, for action in Viet
Nam, France and other parts of the world.

"The Purple Heart (awarded only for injury in action) was the only medal he
didn't want to earn," his mother told the News-Press.

SMALL ARMS VICTIM

Capt. Hail was hospitalized in February with glass wounds in his eyes, after
his plane was hit by hostile small-arms fire. He returned to combat after
release from the hospital.

The veteran jet pilot has told his parents that the old propeller-powered
Sky Raiders of the Vietnamese Air Force were "mangy-looking" and too slow to
escape groud fire. But they are sturdy, dependable and, even bullet-ridden,
they continue to fly."

Capt. Hail's reaction to Vietnamese soldiers with whom he has worked since
October, range from frustration to extreme admiration, his mother said.

"He wrote that the Vietnamese pilots sometimes got so excited while engaging
the enemy that he spent half his time trying to stay out of their way," she
said.

"But he is very proud of his young pilots. Those who have been trained by
the advisers are taught American military procedures from the beginning and
are very good. He says the Vietnamese are honorable and trustworthy."

When she questioned the Vietnamese loyalty and her son's safety, he wrote,
"They feel so resposible for the safety of the advisers that they are often
overprotective."

WANTED VIET DUTY

"He wanted to go to Viet Nam and believes strongly in what he is doing
there," Mrs. Hail said. "But he says the war can't be won in the air. The
Viet Cong fight only under their own terms and have learned that the best
time to raid is during the bad weather that keeps Air Force plane grounded."

"Maybe he is down in the thick jungle or in a little village," Mrs. Hail
said. "I don't know that he is all right, but I'm really convinced - we're
all convinced, that he will come home safe.

"He's been in tough situations before. He's had the best training in the
world and he knows how to take care of himself.

--------------
On May 12, 1973 the Altadena Woman's Club Juniors, planted a "Freedom Tree"
at the corner of Altadena Drive and Lake Street. The living tribute dedicated
to Lt. Col. W.W. Hain. At the time of the dedication there had been "no
traces of him or his plane. His family has not received any letters from or
about him."

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