Herman Smits Jr.

Herman Smits Jr. was born and raised in Scranton. He attended Scranton High School and graduated in 1947 before joining the Air Force as a pilot. In 1966 MAJ Smits moved to Panama City, FL and was stationed at Tyndall Air Force Base as a McDonnell F-101 “Voodoo” pilot instructor. He left for Uben, Thailand on December 28, 1967, but was later transferred to Quin Nahon, Vietnam where he volunteered to serve in the combat zone. On July 5, 1968 MAJ Smits was picking up a passenger on his way back to base. A distress call then came from Smits saying that his plane was being hit by hostile ground fire. The plane crashed over South Vietnam, killing Smits and his passenger. A funeral service took place at Tyndall Air Force Base and he was buried in Evergreen Memorial Gardens, both located in Panama City, FL. He left behind a wife and two teenage sons.