It is shown, both analytically and through one-dimensional numerical computations, that highly charged ions propagating through a plasma with thermal or faster than thermal velocities, drive significant ion-acoustic wakefields. By a mechanism similar to electron pairing in superconductors, such wakefields may contribute to the formation of transient molecular ions. Comparison is made with the results of experiments in which dense high temperature plasmas are created by laser irradiated colliding foils.