Mack's History
Gone But Not Forgotten
Major Mack Thies, Class of 1964, was killed in an F-4E aircraft crash on 3 May 1976, at Homestead AFB, FL. Funeral services for Major Thies were held on 7 May 1976 in the Cadet Chapel. He was interred in the Academy Cemetery.
Mack was survived by his mother, Mrs. Catherine M. Thies, 3635 Grennoch Lane, Houston, TX 77025. As a cadet, Mack was a member of the Ski and Saddle Clubs and a member of the Forum. He was the Class of 1964 Chairman of the Wing Honor Committee. He participated in the Masters Program in Astronautics and was a member of the 6th Cadet Squadron.
After graduation from Undergraduate Pilot Training at Moody AFB, GA, Mack served with the 78th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Woodbridge RAF Station, England; the 390th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Da Nang AB, South Vietnam; and the 84th Fighter Interceptor Squadron at Hamilton AFB, CA. It was during his tour in F-4s at Da Nang that he became the fifth USAF Academy graduate to score a confirmed victory over a North Vietnamese MIG.
Mack received a Masters degree in Engineering from Air Force Institute of Technology in 1972 and was subsequently assigned to the 523rd Tactical Fighter Squadron at Clark AB, Philippines and the 31st Tactical Fighter Wing at Homestead AFB, FL as an F-4E pilot, where he was stationed at the time of the crash.
(Gone But Not Forgotten, Checkpoints, Summer 1976)
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