Thunderbird returns to Nellis for final farewell
A Thunderbird pilot killed in Southeast Asia and listed as missing in action for more than 40 years returned to the location of his last Air Force assignment Jan. 14 for a celebration of his life among a sea of family and peers.
Major Goodman served as Thunderbird No. 8, the team's advance pilot and narrator, from 1964 to 1965. While assigned to squadron, he was selected to serve as a liaison officer between the Air Force and the Navy
On Feb. 20, 1967, just days after completing a combat mission for which he earned the Silver Star for saving a downed aircrew, he and his weapons systems officer, retired Cdr. Gary Thornton, were flying an F-4 Phantom fighter from the USS Enterprise during a bombing mission against a railroad siding in North Vietnam. At a point about eight miles south of the city Thanh Hoa, they were struck by enemy anti-aircraft fire and their plane exploded. Commander Thornton was able to eject at just 250 feet altitude, but Major Goodman did not escape. Commander Thornton survived and was held captive until his release in 1973.
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