PLATT, Captain Alfred G. (Fred) Captain Alfred G. (Fred) Platt passed away at his home in Houston at age 75 after a long struggle with injuries suffered during the Vietnam war. Fred graduated from The University of Texas Business School and joined the Air Force and Pilot Training. This eventually led to his selection (volunteering!) for a specialized secret group operating in Laos called The Ravens, despite our president’s insistence that “we weren’t in Laos.” Fred was one of the leaders of that group, flew over 700 missions and reached hero status, being awarded 48 medals including the Distinguished Flying Cross with two Oak Leaf Clusters and his most prized Silver Star; the picture above shows him receiving that award at age 29 from Major General Paul Stoney. Most who serve in the military and are fortunate enough to survive an injury, do receive a Purple Heart; Fred received three of them!! He crashlanded multiple times when his plane was hit by enemy fire, but the last crash left him with a severe neck injury which would plague him the rest of his life. It took over a year to be able to walk, but despite constant pain he led an active life, being heavily involved in the Houston Fat Stock Show and Rodeo as well as activities with the CIA and with his multiple devoted friends, many of whom were also ex-military. THE RAVENS, a novel by Christopher Robbins, detailed the exploits of this unique group of military men, but featured Fred. He is survived by his brother, Melvin Platt, M.D. (Jody) of Dallas, his sister, Suzie Kornblit-Rosenberg (Myron) of Sugar Land, nephews Mark Platt (Alice) of Dallas, Todd Kornblit (Jennifer) of Nashville, nieces Mimi Zimmerman (Rabbi Brian) of Dallas and Kym McMorries (Lee) of Missouri City. His great-nephews are Saul Zimmerman and Max Platt of Dallas and Maddox McMorries of Enid, OK and his great-nieces are Molly Zimmerman and Abby Platt of Dallas and Morgan and Molly Kornblit of Nashville. Fred always came to Dallas for Thanksgiving to be with his family and tell his many stories, which will be missed. He is eligible for burial at Arlington National Cemetery, but he was a Texan through and through and insisted that he be buried on Texas soil, so a military funeral is set for May 18th at 2:30 at Houston’s National Cemetery with Rabbi Brian Zimmerman officiating. Donations in Fred’s memory may be made to American Legion China Post No. 1 (he served as their Commander for the last 25 years), Attention Adjutant, P.O. Box 299, Fate, TX 75132-0299, or to the charity of your choice .

Published in Dallas Morning News on May 15, 2016

See more at: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/dallasmorningnews/obituary.aspx?n=Alfred-G-Platt-Fred&pid=179995948#sthash.wQELZvqu.dpuf.