MARSHALL, MARION ANTHONY
Name: Marion Anthony Marshall
Rank/Branch: O3/US Air Force, NAV
Unit: 13th TFS
Date of Birth:
Home City of Record: Upper Marlboro MD
Date of Loss: 03 July 1972
Country of Loss: North Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 180720N 1054347E (WF778023)
Status (In 1973): Missing In Action
Category:
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: F4E
Missions: 51 North Vietnam 266 Total
Other Personnel In Incident: Stephen H. Cuthbert, remains returned, pilot
Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project 01 April 1991 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.
REMARKS: 730329 RELEASED BY DRV
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.
The F4J fighter plane piloted by Stephen Cuthbert and navigated by Marion
"Tony" Marshall was shot down on July 3, 1972, 70 miles northwest of Dong
Hoi in North Vietnam. A September 1972 Radio Hanoi broadcast stated that the
North Vietnamese had captured Capt. Marshall and mentioned the pilot,
Cuthbert, by name.
Marshall was taken prisoner and subsequently released in the spring of 1973.
He maintains that he never revealed the correct name of his pilot, although
just one week before he was to be released, Marshall's Vietnamese captors
returned his personal belongings to him, and included Cuthbert's custom-made
wedding band.
The Vietnamese deny any knowledge of Cuthbert. They maintain that to
"discover" additional information on Americans, they must have increased
"cooperation" from the United States so that their people will perceive
"good will." Cuthbert is one of nearly 2500 Americans lost in Southeast
Asia, and only one of many about whom the Vietnamese have certain knowledge
which they are withholding.
Stephen H. Cuthbert was promoted to the rank of Major during the period he
was maintained Missing in Action.
SOURCE: WE CAME HOME copyright 1977
Captain and Mrs. Frederic A Wyatt (USNR Ret), Barbara Powers Wyatt, Editor
P.O.W. Publications, 10250 Moorpark St., Toluca Lake, CA 91602
Text is reproduced as found in the original publication (including date and
spelling errors).
UPDATE - 09/95 by the P.O.W. NETWORK, Skidmore, MO
MARION A. MARSHALL
Captain - United States Air Force
Shot Down: July 3, 1972
Released: March 29, 1973
I was born in Washington, D. C. and lived in Maryland with my mother and
sister until I entered the United States Air Force Academy in June 1964,
after graduating from Douglass High School in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. I
graduated from the Academy in 1968 and attended Navigator Training and
Electronic Warfare Training at Mather Air Force Base, California. After
survival training, I spent a year at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida in the
F-4 I was then assigned to the 13th TFS at Udorn RTAB, Thailand. I remained
with this Sierra Hotel Squadron from April 1971 until that fateful day-3
July 1972.
Upon completion of my normal tour at Udorn, RTAB, Thailand, I extended for
six additional months. I was on a mission as an F-4 backseater on a Fast
FAC (Foward Air Controller) mission in the southern part of North Vietnam on
3 July 1972. While we were in a dive to mark a target our external
centerline fuel tank apparently collapsed, causing the aircraft to become
uncontrollable. I was ejected by the aircraft commander. I must have been
in shock following the ejection because I can only remember hitting the
ground and standing there dazed for an unknown length of time. My next
conscious recollection is of helping the Vietnamese remove my gun and G-suit
after which I do not recall anything until I suddenly "awakened," to find
myself stripped and tied in an underground bunker - here I first realized
that I was in trouble and completely alone. It was an empty feeling I was
moved to a village during the night and interrogated the following day.
The interrogation was surprisingly brief and shallow, and the treatment was
outstanding - compared to what I had expected. I told them that I was on the
mission as a photographer, hoping to escape before my story caught up with
me. I reached Hanoi after traveling by jeep for five nights and hiding
during the days, spent Eve days in a loose solitary confinement and was
moved with four other men from the Hilton to the Zoo, where we moved in with
four additional men who had been captured recently. I remained at the Zoo
until I was repatriated on 29 March 1973, except for a brief return trip
to the Hilton during the December campaign.
I was confident that it was simply a matter of time until I would be
released - whenever the war ended, and since I knew early that my family
knew that I was OK, I did not suffer any anxiety over my situation as my
training had prepared me for the worst possible situation. Also, I of
course, always realized that I faced this possibility whenever I went on a
mission.
The most difficult part of my internment was living with the knowledge
that I had caused my family and friends to suffer a period of anxiety and
worry, for which they could never be properly prepared. They were among the
lucky ones however. The families of the men who are still MIA have endured
and continue to endure a pain far worse than any torture we could have
suffered. My prayers are with these families.
December 1996
Marion Marshall is a Lt. Colonel in the United States Air Force. He is
stationed in California with his wife Veta.
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