In Memoriam

Jim Hoppe

James Dennis Hoppe

On 13 November 1970, Lt James (Bud) D Hoppe, Class of 1968 and former member of the 12th Cadet Squadron, was listed as missing. He was flying a U-10 aircraft over Costa Rica during a search operation and was declared missing after failing to return to his base. His status was changed to deceased on 18 March 1971, the date of receipt of evidence in Hq USAF that Lt Hoppe could not have survived. Lt Hoppe is survived by his wife, Sandra, and by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Norbert J Hoppe.

The Air Force decided not to use the U-10 in Vietnam any more as the engines were unreliable and took a lot of maintenance. Bud had a choice: take a U-10 to Central America (I believe based in Panama), with dependents able to follow in about a year, or go to training in a C-141. He chose the U-10.
Al Dunkerly

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