 Academy uniform. Courtesy of Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund |
Remember...Joseph Clair Austin
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Joseph Clair Austin was born in Marshall County, West Virginia, on June 30, 1929, to parents Joseph Russell Austin and Estella Esther McCoy Austin. He was the older of two brothers, with Charles Dean Austin just two years behind. Growing up in Moundsville, he attended local schools and attained the rank of Eagle Scout. ("Lt.-Col. Clair Austin Lost in North Vietnam," Moundsville [WV] Echo, 20 March 1967.)
Joe would ultimately attend and graduate from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, but he arrived there via a circuitous route. [Note that at the time of his attendance, there was no separate Air Force academy.] An article in Assembly, the official magazine of the Association of the Graduates of West Point ("Joseph Clair Austin," May/June 1998), provides some details of his life and death.
From his home in Moundsville, West Virginia, Joe joined the Air Force. He came through the prep school at Stewart Field to West Point, where he became known for his adventurous nature, affable personality, quick and incisive mind, enthusiasm, unquenchable spirit, and ability to mold and lead others. His enthusiasm and energy propelled him to excel in all he did. He was a one of a kind person, always giving his very best effort, then exceeding that.When Joe arrived at West Point he had never before held a lacrosse stick, but soon became so skilled a competitor that even today people who played against him remember his ability to get around them on the "crease" and shoot the impossible goals. Joe honed his skills by the extra effort of practicing on his free time at North Athletic Field, or at the handball courts when most everyone else was taking their leisure.
His West Point lacrosse teammates elected him captain for the 1952 season, when they became co-champions with Princeton. But his leadership ability went far beyond the athletic field, and he became Cadet Adjutant of the First Regiment.
Joe loved being in the Air Force. While he seemed to be easy-going, his approach to flying was intense. Marana and Willliams Field, Arizona, were the locales of his pilot training. He then served as a test pilot at McGuire Air Force Base.
It seems that Joe excelled in his every endeavor. He took three master's degrees: industrial administration at Carnegie Mellon, operations research from New York University, and public administration from George Washington University. After graduating from the Air University at Maxwell Air Force Base, he became an instructor in Squadron Officers School. He later had two assignments at Stewart Field.
In 1952, the year of his West Point graduation, he married Beverly ("Bunny") Martino, and they had two children: Joseph John and Thomas David.
| As a member of the 34th Tactical Fighter Squadron, in 1967 Lieutenant Colonel Austin was deployed to Vietnam. His biography as posted on The POW Network website, explains:
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 Lt. Col. Austin on duty. Courtesy of Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund |
Lt. Col. Joseph C. Austin was an F105 pilot assigned a mission over North Vietnam on March 19, 1967. Departing from his base (probably in Thailand), Austin proceeded to his mission area. When Austin's aircraft was just east of the Ban Karai Pass, it was hit by enemy fire and crashed.The Ban Karai Pass is one of several passageways through the mountainous border of Vietnam and Laos. American aircraft flying from Thailand to missions over North Vietnam flew through them regularly, and many aircraft were lost. On the Laos side of the border coursed the "Ho Chi Minh Trail", a road heavily traveled by North Vietnamese troops moving materiel and personnel to their destinations through the relative safety of neutral Laos. The return ratio of men lost in and around the passes is far lower than that of those men lost in more populous areas, even though both were shot down by the same enemy and the same weapons. This is partly due to the extremely rugged terrain and resulting difficulty in recovery.
It was not known if Austin safely ejected from his aircraft, but not thought likely that he survived. However, because the opportunity existed for him to eject safely, Austin was declared Missing in Action rather than presumed dead.
When 591 Americans were released in Operation Homecoming in 1973, Austin was not among them. The Vietnamese denied any knowledge of him, although it was their guns that downed him and it is unlikely that the crashing aircraft escaped their attention. The U.S. believes the Vietnamese can account for Austin, alive or dead.
Since American involvement in Vietnam ended in 1975, over 10,000 reports relating to Americans missing, prisoner, or otherwise unaccounted for in Indochina have been received by the U.S. Government. Many officials, having examined this largely classified information, have reluctantly concluded that many Americans are still alive today, held captive by our long-ago enemy.
The United States Government, although involved in talks with the Vietnamese since the end of the war, has been unable to bring home a single live prisoner. The Vietnamese, on the other hand, refuse to let the issue die, with the ultimate hope of normalizing relations with the west.
The Americans who are still captive have been reduced to bargaining pawns between two nations. For their sakes, everything possible must be done to bring them home. The sacrifice of tens of thousands of America's young men is mocked by the abandonment of their comrades. For the sake of our future fighting men and those who have given their lives in the defense of their country, we must see to it that we never again abandon our soldiers to enemy hands.
Joseph C. Austin graduated from West Point in 1952. He was promoted to the rank of Colonel during the period he was maintained missing. ("Austin, Joseph Clair," POW Biographies, January 2020, accessed 6 May 2025, https://www.pownetwork.org/bios/a/a031.htm.)
Colonel Austin was a highly decorated Air Force member. His awards include the Silver Star with One Oak Leaf Cluster, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Purple Heart, the Air Medal with One Silver Oak Leaf Cluster, the Air Force Commendation Medal, the Presidential Unit Citation, the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with "V" Device, the National Defense Service Medal with One Bronze Service Star, the Vietnam Service Medal with Two Bronze Service Stars, the Air Force Longevity Service Award with Two Oak Leaf Clusters, the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm, and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal. His remains have not been recovered as of this writing, and he is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing, Honolulu Memorial, National Cemetery of the Pacific
Article prepared by Patricia Richards McClure
May 2025
West Virginia Archives and History welcomes any additional information that can be provided about these veterans, including photographs, family names, letters and other relevant personal history.
