Fernando L. Ribas-Dominicci

On December 25, 1988, after years of denying that they had the bodies of the two crew members, Gaddafi offered to release the body of Lorence to his family through Pope John Paul II. The body recovered and thought to be that of Lorence was actually that of then-Captain Fernando L. Ribas-Domminici, which was identified by dental records and returned in 1989.

On April 15, 1986, in response to acts of terrorism sponsored by Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi, the United States attacked key terrorist training facilities in Tripoli, Libya using 18 USAF F-111F fighter-bombers & 5 EF-111A Radar Jamming aircraft from bases in England. The attack was code-named Operation El Dorado Canyon. This was part of a joint strike mission in coordination with US Navy aircraft which struck targets in Behghazi, Libya at the same time. Maj. Ribas-Dominicci was one of the pilots who participated in the air raid as member of the 48th Tactical Fighter Wing. His F-111F was shot down in action over the disputed Gulf of Sidra off the Libyan coast. Ribas-Dominicci and his Weapons Systems Officer (WSO), Capt. Paul F. Lorence, were the only U.S. casualties of the mission.

Both men's names are engraved in the F-111 "Vark" Memorial Park located in Clovis, New Mexico. Ribas-Dominicci was awarded the Purple Heart and posthumously promoted to the rank of major, effective April 15, 1986.

Ribas-Dominicci was assigned to Cannon Air Force Base, in New Mexico, where he received advanced training as a General Dynamics F-111 combat pilot. By 1983, Ribas-Dominicci was a Captain and the recipient of the Air Force Commendation Medal. In 1985, he completed his master's degree in aeronautical science at the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida, USA.

Major Fernando Luis Ribas-Dominicci (June 24, 1952 – April 15, 1986), was an F-111F pilot in the United States Air Force. He was killed in action during Operation El Dorado Canyon, the April 15, 1986 U.S. air raid on Libya.