Scope and Contents

Slides and photographs document the service of Lewis F. Gifford, Jr. in Vietnam from October 30, 1966 to October 23, 1967. Images include Gifford receiving the Air Medal, Gifford in aircraft, various locales in Vietnam, Hong Kong, and Bangkok, Jungle Survival School, and the investigation of a C-7A shot down on August 3, 1967.

Biographical / Historical

Lewis Foster Gifford, Jr. was born in Oak Park, Illinois on May 31, 1921. During World War II he joined the Army Air Corps, became a pilot, and flew 57 B-52 missions in the South Pacific Theater of Operations. After the war, Gifford earned a degree in Aeronautical - Mechanical Engineering from the University of Kentucky. In 1951 he was recalled to active duty and served as an officer in the US Air Force until January 1, 1973. During the Vietnam War, he flew 98 missions in the C-7A Caribou. He earned a Purple Heart, the Air Medal with Six Oak Leaf Clusters, a Missile Badge, and Command Pilot Wings. After his service in Vietnam he worked for Boeing and was a member of several community organizations including the Triangle Fraternity, the NRA, the DAV, the Boeing Museum of Flight, and the C-7A Caribou Association. He and his wife, Marjorie, had three daughters and four grandsons. Lewis Gifford, Jr. died on Christmas Day, 2002.