Bob Connor
Kontum
As a child born in ‘46, the first of four. I’ve lived what your wife and children may have experienced.
My Father was a graduate of Kings Point College as a Merchant Marine until his retirement in ‘64.
The reality, I never really had a father until ‘64. I graduated high school in ‘65. Turned down a free “all” expense paid free Engineer program at Kings Point.
Simply put, I did not my future family to experience the same not having a Father at key times during my life.
In brief I joined the Air Force in 10/65 intending to be a State Police in PA. I volunteered for VN in 1/67 and was assigned to the Bien Hoa Air Base from 4/67- 4/68 assigned to the 3rd Security Police Sqd. Lived thru a variety of mortar and rocket attacks. I volunteered to work midnight shift all year. As I wanted to be awake vs in a hut sleeping.
In brief I did not join the State Police but instead worked for a division of then Union Carbide known today as Linde (Industrial Gas). This started in 7/71 as a dispatcher and retired as a facility (plant) manager for two facilities here on the east coast. I was the first non-Engineer to manage two major facilities union and contracted Drivers and plant employees.
I accomplished/learned a lot during my 32 years with great people.
Now for Kontum: A major target for me of thousands KIA.
In 2016 I started a humanitarian volunteer project to help VN find the mass graves we filled during our war.
This is approaching 10 years in October. We are now 5 VN Veterans and 2 VN civilians (in country) who were too young to have been in the war.
I am also approved by the DPAA to search for our MIAs. This starts with a former VC and or NVA to contacts saying, “I know where an American is buried”. We have provided the DPAA with what they vetted as “new and valid details” for 10 of our own.
We are well respected throughout VN for what we have provided on grave sites throughout VN exceeds well beyond 8,000 remains of the 200,000 of their missing soldiers.
All of this success is due to our own Veterans we have found who fought the battle and were now willing and able to step back in time to plot their path to the grave(s) they filled over 50 years ago.
We are working on Kontum base from the ‘68 thru ‘72 era. We have found the ones buried in a ditch on the edge of a road east of the MACV compound. I know of another north side of the wall of the ARVN compound and a rumor of a potential based on witnesses of the “smell of death” while they are getting medical care in a new building that was not there prior to ‘68. I am looking for anyone knows of this medical building toward the east side above the air strip.
The thought is it’s sitting on a grave.
Know anybody…..?
I’ve been back to VN at their invitation in 2017 to find the first grave from our Tet’68 battle. Again in 2024 to review the locations of four other graves. To walk up to them and stand by them. A 6th grave sill eludes us.
We were attack by 2500 as confirmed by the Col. Who invited us in 2017. We’ve documented the anticipated volume of VN KIA estimated at 1600. With one grave containing 670 by a witness I contacted directly who counted the bodies. We lost 2 KIA and 1 died of a heart attack.
Any detailed After-Action Reports are normally the initial best source potential grave areas.
They help when I drill down to the unit doing the cleanup. As well comparing to both aerial and satellite views.
Bob Connor <bobconnor1101@gmail.com>
Saturday, January 17, 2026 at 14:50:32 (EST)