In late November 1966, Russell Bott and Willie Stark were inserted about 1½ miles into Laos, west of the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone), along with a number of Vietnamese Special Forces (LLBD) "strikers". The team, a long-range reconnaissance patrol(LRRP), was soon discovered by a superior North Vietnamese force, members of the 325B NVA Division. A two day running battle ensued. Near the end, Bott radioed that he was down to one hand grenade and one magazine of ammunition. He also stated that several of the Vietnamese members of the team were dead or wounded. Willie Stark, wounded in the chest and leg, was still alive. Bott requested exfiltration at that time. He refused to leave his wounded teammate to seek safety.   In his last radio message, Bott indicated that he was going to destroy his radio, that he felt capture was imminent. 
 
Two gunships working the area were hit by enemy fire. Also, the exfiltration helicopter from the 281st Assault Helicopter Company was hit, crashed and burned, killing the crew of four and Irby Dyer, a medic from Detachment B-5 Delta, who had gone in to help treat the wounded. The wreckage of the aircraft and all five remains were found in searches conducted December 10~13th. The remains, which had been horribly mutilated by the enemy, were left at the site. When a team returned to recover the remains, U.S. bombing and strafing activities had destroyed them further. The identifiable remains of three of the crew were recovered, but those of Daniel Sulander and Irby Dyer were not. Searches for Bott and Stark were unsuccessful. Vietnamese team members, who evaded capture, reported that they had heard North Vietnamese soldiers say, "Here you are! We've been looking for you. Tie his hands, we'll take him this way." 
 
Sgt. First Class Norman Doney, who was Operations Sergeant at that time at B-52 headquarters at Khe Sanh, overheard the intelligence Sergeant on the "52 Desk" reviewing intelligence about Bott, Doney states that it was reported that Bott was seen with his arms tied behind his back going through a village, and that he was alive 3 days after he became missing.  
 
Bott, Dyer, Sulander, and Stark are among nearly 600 Americans lost in Laos during the Vietnam Conflict. Although the Pathet Lao stated on several occassions that they held "tens of tens" of American prisoners, not one man held in Laos was ever released....or negotiated for. Dyer and Sulander died for their country. Stark's fate is unknown. He may have died from his wounds or survived to be captured. Bott, at least, could be one of the hundreds of Americans, experts believe to be alive today. He was loyal to his comrades and to his country. If he is alive, what must he be thinking of us?