Korean War · Reported in Soviet custody · Never returned
The man
His brother Bob, who later married Harry’s widow, Lois, led families suing the Pentagon. “We’ve run out of patience and we’re running out of time,” he said.
An Estonian Gulag prisoner, Boris Uibo, said he spent a year making wooden chess pieces with a “good-natured” blond, blue-eyed American pilot, about 6 feet tall, whose name sounded like Gary or Harry and who said he was downed in Korea. PIP’s research notes about 15 missing airmen could fit. (Unconfirmed by PIP as Moore.)
What is known
Captain Harry C. Moore, a U.S. Air Force fighter pilot, was shot down in Korea on 1 June 1951. He was listed as missing for one year and, after no further information surfaced, he was presumed killed and was so listed.
Moore had flown his damaged F-51, watched by other U.S. pilots, out to the ocean — the route American aviators often took to escape enemy territory and reach American rescuers. In this case, U.S. forces did not make a rescue.
Another set of eyes had also followed Moore down. A Soviet MiG pilot who had engaged the aircraft, Aleksey Alekseevich Kalyuzhniy, later told Pentagon investigators he trailed the smoking plane down to the water. “The F-51 pilot appeared to be in complete control of the aircraft as it gently landed on the sea,” about 20 to 30 meters — less than a hundred feet — from shore. Kalyuzhniy thought the pilot should have survived.
According to a second Soviet officer, he did. “Gary/Harry Moore was interrogated by the commander of the Soviet 64th Fighter Aviation Corps,” Soviet veteran Igor Shavsha later told U.S. investigators.
In 2002 the Pentagon wrote to Moore’s family about this evidence, which indicated he might not have died in 1951, as they had believed for decades, but may instead have been sent to the Soviet Union.
What remains unresolved
What happened to Harry Moore after that interrogation is unknown. Two Soviet accounts — one describing a survivable landing, one describing an interrogation by a corps commander — place him alive in Soviet hands. Neither establishes where he was taken, how long he was held, or how his case ended.
Both accounts were given to U.S. investigators years after the fact and have not been corroborated by records PIP holds.
Why the case matters
Moore’s is the case that produced the litigation described under FOIA Lawsuits. His widow, Lois, and his brother Bob later married and raised a family, having been told for fifty years that he died in 1951. Lois Moore died while the FOIA lawsuits were pending. In 2002 the government told them something different, and then could not tell them what happened next.
A separate lead on this site concerns an American reported to have taught at the Soviet Monino Air Force Academy from 1953 to 1958. Moore’s family believes he may be that man. That is a family’s belief, not an established connection; the account describes an F-86 pilot captured in 1953. See “Our American” at Soviet Monino Air Base.
Evidence and sources
- Statements to Pentagon investigators by former Soviet MiG pilot Aleksey Alekseevich Kalyuzhniy describing the aircraft’s controlled landing on the sea.
- Statement to U.S. investigators by Soviet veteran Igor Shavsha that “Gary/Harry Moore” was interrogated by the commander of the Soviet 64th Fighter Aviation Corps.
- 2002 Pentagon correspondence to the Moore family reporting that he may have been captured by Soviet forces and sent to the Soviet Union.
- Records sought in Moore et al. v. Central Intelligence Agency (1:20-cv-01027-RCL) and Lois Moore et al. v. NARA (1:20-cv-01735-RCL).
Request for information
“We would be most grateful if anyone who knows what happened to our beloved Harry can share the information. We’re looking for the truth and not to blame anyone who was serving his or her country in a conflict now long over. Please help us to find out what happened to our loved one. We will be ever thankful to you.” — Robert and Lois Moore, brother and former wife
Please contact us if you can help with any of the following.
- Soviet or Russian records of the interrogation of a captured American F-51 pilot by the 64th Fighter Aviation Corps in June 1951.
- Recollections from anyone who served with the 64th Fighter Aviation Corps in that period.
- Prison, hospital or camp records from 1951 onward naming an American aviator captured in Korea, or any photograph of such a prisoner in Soviet custody.
Українська
Капітан Гаррі К. Мур, ВПС США — зник безвісти, Корея, 1 червня 1951 року
Капітан Гаррі К. Мур, пілот винищувача Військово-повітряних сил США, був збитий у Кореї 1 червня 1951 року. Рік його вважали зниклим безвісти, а потім визнали загиблим.
Радянський льотчик МіГ Олексій Олексійович Калюжний, який вів бій із цим літаком, пізніше розповів американським дослідникам, що супроводжував пошкоджений F-51 до води. «Пілот F-51, схоже, повністю контролював літак, коли той м’яко сів на воду», — приблизно за 20–30 метрів від берега. Калюжний вважав, що пілот мав вижити.
Інший радянський офіцер, ветеран Ігор Шавша, розповів американським дослідникам: «Гаррі Мура допитував командир 64-го винищувального авіаційного корпусу».
Ми шукаємо: радянські або російські документи про допит захопленого американського пілота F-51 у червні 1951 року; спогади тих, хто служив у 64-му винищувальному авіаційному корпусі; тюремні, госпітальні або табірні записи, у яких згадується американський льотчик, захоплений у Кореї; будь-яку фотографію американського полоненого в радянському полоні.
Родина шукає правду, а не винних. Ми не публікуємо імена джерел без дозволу. Напишіть нам: contact@powinvestigativeproject.org
Русский
Капитан Гарри К. Мур, ВВС США — пропал без вести, Корея, 1 июня 1951 года
Капитан Гарри К. Мур, лётчик-истребитель Военно-воздушных сил США, был сбит в Корее 1 июня 1951 года. Год он числился пропавшим без вести, затем был признан погибшим.
Советский лётчик МиГ Алексей Алексеевич Калюжный, атаковавший этот самолёт, позже рассказал американским специалистам, что сопровождал повреждённый F-51 до воды. «Пилот F-51, по-видимому, полностью контролировал самолёт, когда тот мягко сел на воду», — примерно в 20–30 метрах от берега. Калюжный считал, что пилот должен был выжить.
Другой советский офицер, ветеран Игорь Шавша, рассказал американским специалистам: «Гарри Мура допрашивал командир 64-го истребительного авиационного корпуса».
Мы ищем: советские или российские документы о допросе захваченного американского пилота F-51 в июне 1951 года; воспоминания служивших в 64-м истребительном авиационном корпусе; тюремные, госпитальные или лагерные записи, в которых упоминается американский лётчик, захваченный в Корее; любую фотографию американского пленного в советском плену.
Семья ищет правду, а не виновных. Мы не публикуем имена источников без разрешения. Напишите нам: contact@powinvestigativeproject.org