http://www.eagletimes.com/node/44217
PAUL HOWE PHOTO
Tom Martin, a member of the 336 assault helicopter unit in the Vietnam War, of Chester, looks for a fellow soldiers name who was killed on Christmas Day in 1968 on the movable Vietnam War Memorial that is on the Brown Football Field at Riverside Park in Springfield through Monday. A dedication ceremony will be held at the wall Saturday at noon. 2p1.jpg
Anyone have a list of Springfield or the surrounding area towns' residents who are listed on Vietnam War Memorial?
ReplyDeleteIf you go to the Wall, there is a list of people from Springfield and surrounding towns that have given their lives.
ReplyDeleteThank you for bringing this to our community!
ReplyDeleteThat is a pretty amazing picture at the top of the blog, I don't think I have ever seen a panoramic picture of the wall.
ReplyDeleteThe last to die in Vietnam listed on Panel 01W Line 124:
ReplyDeleteOn April 29TH, 1975 the North Vietnamese Army was entering Saigon while US military forces, predominantly Marine air, were desperately trying to evacuate US military, diplomatic, and civilian personnel from Saigon and the surrounding areas. The last four US military members to die in Vietnam were Marines, two ashore and two afloat:
E Co, USMC Security Guard Bn, AmEmbassy Saigon
Cpl Charles McMahon, Woburn, MA
LCpl Darwin L. Judge, Marshalltown, IA
Cpl McMahon and LCpl Judge were killed by a rocket attack while defending the Defense Attache Building on Tan Son Nhut Airbase; their bodies were not recovered in 1975, but their remains were repatriated on 22 Feb 1976.
HMM-164, USS HANCOCK, TF 77
Capt William C. Nystul, Coronodo, CA
1stLt Michael J. Shea, El Paso, TX
Captain Nystul and 1stLt Shea were piloting a CH-46D helicopter, BuNo 154042, providing SAR support for the aircraft coming and going from the US naval forces offshore. Just before midnight on 29/30 April, while flying a downwind approach to landing on the USS HANCOCK, the CH-46 impacted the water and sank. The two pilots went down with their aircraft. Their bodies were never recovered.
Charlie McMahon was a friend of mine growing up. I went to the wall Friday and with the help of one of the staff, took a rubbing of his and LCpl Judge's names. Their names were side by side, just as they fell. Very emotional. Thank you for bringing the wall to Springfield and thank you to the wonderful staffers.
DeleteThe two pilots that I mentioned that were the last to die flew Search and Rescue for me as I made an emergency landing with a damaged helicopter aboard the USS Hancock during Operation Frequent Wind, the evacuation of Saigon. Thankfully I was able to land safely but they were there to pull me and my crew from the water if need be. A few minutes later when it was their turn to land they crashed at sea. No one really knows why. It had been a long eventful and tiring day for all involved. It was a dark moonless night and perhaps because of the conditions they experienced the same extreme vertigo as I had just a few minutes before which may have temporarily disorientated them just a bit too long. Their crew was heroically rescued by another SAR helicopter but the pilots never made it out. They will not be forgotten by me and I hope by many others.
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