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Two helicopter crash victims from Hawaii

Specialists leave to help in aftermath

By Gregg K. Kakesako — Star-Bulletin

Two of the seven U.S. servicemen killed in helicopter crash while searching on an exploratory mission for Vietnam War MIAs were identified as being stationed in Hawaii.

They are Master Sgt. Steven L. Moser, 38, a Vietnamese linguist with Joint Task Force-Full Accounting at its Camp Smith command operation, and Sgt. 1st Class Tommy Murphy, 38, a mortuary affairs specialist from the U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory at Hickam Air Force Base.

Moser is single. Murphy is married.

The seven servicemen were among 16 people killed in the crash. Nine were Vietnamese, whose names have not been released. The other U.S. victims were:

>> Army Lt. Col. Rennie M. Cory Jr., 43, of Fort Bragg, N.C. He was the JTF-FA outgoing Hanoi detachment commander.

>> Army Lt. Col. George Martin III, of Fort Drum, N.Y. Martin, 40, is a battalion commander at Fort Drum and was supposed to be in the incoming Hanoi JTF-FA detachment commander.

>> Air Force Maj. Charles E. Lewis, 36, of Naples, Italy. He was the deputy Hanoi detachment commander.

>> Chief Petty Officer Pedro Gonzales, 36, of San Diego. He was a medic.

>> Air Force Tech. Sgt. Robert M. Flynn, 35. He was a JTF-FA Vietnamese linguist.

They were killed Saturday as members of an advance party preparing for a MIA recovery mission in Vietnam. They were all working for JTF-FA, which is headquartered at Camp Smith. JTF-FA is the key point of the U.S. effort to account for nearly 2,000 Americans who did not come home from the Vietnam War.

They were considered among the best in MIA recovery operations.

Martin's parents in Hopkins, S.C. told Associated Press that Martin was a 17-year Army veteran who was to assume command of the JTF-FA detachment in Hanoi later this year. He was a Fort Drum commander battalion commander.

Martin, 40, was married for 17 years. He and his wife, Susan, have two daughters, Jessie, 14; and Katie, 11, his mother, Thelma Martin, said.

She said her son was anxious "to bring closure to the families of the people missing in Vietnam. He felt like it was a very important mission and he could make all the difference."

The bodies of the American servicemen are expected to be returned to Hawaii once they have been identified. That could occur as early as this weekend.

They were part of an advance party making logistical and other arrangements for a Vietnam recovery mission to begin May 3. Also killed were nine Vietnamese -- two members of the Vietnamese Office of Seeking Missing Persons -- three Vietnamese air crew members and four aircraft technicians.

Lt. Col. Franklin Childress, JTF-FA spokesman, said nine Hawaii-based servicemen and civilians left the islands yesterday to join 15 members of a JTF-FA crew from Laos to help with identification.

Three of the specialists from Hawaii were anthropologists and dental specialists from the CIL-HI Laboratory.

The Army facility is considered the premier forensic operation in the world and has been working with JTF-FA as part of the military's efforts to recover and identify missing servicemen from the Vietnam War.

However, the Army lab also has a larger worldwide mission encompassing more than just that war.

The remains of the 16 victims were taken by ambulance to a military hospital in Hanoi. where forensic specialists will work to identify them.

Pete Peterson, U.S. ambassador to Vietnam, was at the hospital in Hanoi. The 16 were riding in a Russian-made M-17 helicopter chartered from the Vietnamese military.

Childress said JTF-FA had been renting helicopters from the Vietnamese since it began its recovery operations in 1992. The pilot of the helicopter was Vietnamese. "This was the first crash that has occurred since we began," Childress said.

The crash occurred near 7 p.m. in central Vietnam 280 miles south of Hanoi. The helicopter was on its way to Hue after canceling a stop in Dong Hoi, the capital of Quang Binh province, because of bad weather.

It smashed into the side of a mountain in Bo Trach district in Quang Binh province.

Childress said no determination has been made when the excavations planned for May at 6 sites in Vietnam will be resumed. Ninety-five servicemen and civilians were supposed to participate in what was the third of four Vietnam recovery operations this year.

Since JTF-FA was created in 1992, it has conducted more than 3,400 investigations and 590 recovery operations leading to repatriation of more than 500 sets of remains believed to be missing U.S. servicemen.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

________________________________________________________________________________

IMMEDIATE RELEASE Press Statement APRIL 9, 2001 No. 01-03 301 585-4000
Contact: Jim Greene
VVA EXPRESSES SORROW OVER HELICOPTER CRASH VICTIMS IN VIETNAM

Vietnam Veterans of America National President George C. Duggins has expressed profound sorrow over the death of seven Americans and nine Vietnamese whose bodies were recovered in Vietnam following the crash of their helicopter Saturday while searching for the remains of American servicemembers missing from the Vietnam War.

Duggins said, “we want to express our deepest condolences to the families, both American and Vietnamese, of those lost in this tragic accident.”

The Pentagon, according to news sources, said the seven Americans and nine Vietnamese were reported dead after their helicopter crashed into the side of a mountain in central Vietnam, about 280 miles south of Hanoi. The Americans were part of the U.S. Joint Task Force-Full

Accounting (JTF-FA) unit stationed in Hanoi and other team members based in Hawaii. Their identities have not been released pending notification of their families.

Duggins traveled to Vietnam last November at the request of the White House as a member of the official visit by President Clinton, and met with task force personnel for a briefing.

“We have developed a deep friendship with them and lasting respect for their work, whether in the field searching for evidence of live American POWs, or recovering the remains of those still listed as Missing In Action. We were shocked and saddened by this news,” said Thomas H. Corey, VVA Vice President.

Corey has been to Vietnam eleven times in support of VVA’s Veterans Initiative, and he meets regularly with the JFT-FA and Vietnamese officials in Vietnam and the United States.

“Although the war ended in 1975, the grief is ever-present for many veterans’ families and will remain so until the fullest possible accounting is made for our POWs and MIAs,” Corey said. “The loss of these dedicated people who died trying to bring closure will not be forgotten. They, too, are casualties of that war.” .- END -

Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) is the nation's only congressionally chartered veterans service organization dedicated solely to the needs of Vietnam-era veterans and their families. VVA's founding principle is "Never again will one generation of veterans abandon another."

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

Defense POW/MIA News Update April 9, 2001

VIETNAMESE HELICOPTER CRASH CLAIMS 16 LIVES

Seven U.S. servicemen and nine Vietnamese were killed Saturday (Vietnam time) when a Vietnamese helicopter in which they were flying crashed in Quang Binh province.

The Americans and Vietnamese were surveying potential sites for full-scale excavations to recover the remains of Americans who were missing in action from the Vietnam War.

The names of the servicemen killed were released by the U.S. military services today. Army: Lt. Col. Rennie Melville Cory, Jr., of North Carolina, outgoing commander of Detachment 2, JTF-FA, Hanoi; Lt. Col. George D. Martin, assigned to the 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), Ft. Drum, N.Y. Lt. Col. Martin was the incoming commander of Detachment 2; Sgt. 1st Class Tommy James Murphy, of Dawson, Georgia, a mortuary affairs specialist and team sergeant assigned to the U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory, Hawaii.

Air Force: Maj. Charles E. Lewis, 36, of Las Cruces, N.M., deputy commander Detachment 2; Master Sgt. Steven L. Moser, 38, of San Diego, Calif., JTF-FA Vietnamese linguist; and Tech. Sgt. Robert M. Flynn, 35, of Huntsville, Ala., Vietnamese linguist, JTF-FA.

Navy: Hospital Corpsman Chief Pedro Juan Gonzalez, Buckeye, Ariz., assigned to the Consolidated Divers Unit, San Diego, Calif.

Also killed in the crash were two members of the Vietnamese Office of Seeking Missing Persons, the Vietnamese agency that assists Joint Task Force Full Accounting in its investigation and recovery efforts in Vietnam. Additionally, three Vietnamese aircrew members and four aircraft technicians were lost.

In remarks today, U.S. Ambassador Peterson recognized the positive involvement of the Vietnamese government in the recovery operations, and the sense of shared grief between our two governments over this tragedy. The cause of the accident is under investigation.

______________________________________________________________________________________

THE WHITE HOUSE (Camp David, Maryland)
Office of the Press Secretary
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 7, 2001

STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT

Laura and I were deeply saddened to learn of the crash this morning in central Vietnam of a helicopter carrying sixteen people, including seven U.S. military personnel, who were on an important mission to find and recover the remains of servicemen missing from the Vietnam War. The families of the service personnel lost in today's tragic accident know better than most the contribution their loved ones made in bringing closure to scores of families across America. Today's loss is a terrible one for our Nation. Although not lost in a hostile act, like those for whom they search, they too have lived lives of great consequence, answering a calling of service to their fellow citizens. As we enter a period of religious holidays across America, may we remember their sacrifice and keep them, and their families, in our thoughts and prayers.

STATEMENT OF SECRETARY OF DEFENSE DONALD H. RUMSFELD

Americans are saddened by today's tragic loss of life of both U.S. and Vietnamese service personnel in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Those of us in the Department of Defense, and the families of our missing, are keenly aware of the dedication of both the American and Vietnamese team members who were, on this very day, searching for servicemen who have been missing in action since the end of the war.

Since 1985, American teams, with the full support of their Vietnamese counterparts, have conducted investigations and excavations in that country. As a result of this sustained cooperation, we have recovered and identified the remains of more than 600 Americans and continue to search for those still missing in Southeast Asia. Led by the Joint Task Force-Full Accounting and the U.S. Army's Central Identification Laboratory, Hawaii, this recovery work is truly a noble calling.

These joint teams have maintained a truly remarkable safety record, particularly given the dangerous and difficult terrain in which they work. Today's tragedy represents the first loss of life either side has suffered in the 65 joint field activities that have been completed in Vietnam. To the families of those whose loved ones have yet to be accounted-for, be assured that our mission will continue, even in the face of this tragedy. Our hearts go to the families and friends of those who today made the ultimate sacrifice in carrying out this humanitarian mission. They gave their lives so that others might come home. May God bless and be with them.

STATEMENT BY J. ALAN LIOTTA
Acting Deputy Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for POW/Missing Personnel Affairs

All of us in the Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office are devastated by the deaths of seven American servicemen and nine Vietnamese aboard a Vietnamese helicopter which crashed in Quang Binh province.

Both the Americans and Vietnamese included men with whom we had worked during our more than 15 years of joint recovery operations in Vietnam. Others were new to this mission. All were our friends.

The deaths of these 16 men have stunned us. Their deaths have saddened their families in ways that none of us can ever know. But we do know of the commitment all these men shared -- to bring answers to the families of our MIAs who have waited much too long for closure.

We all pray the noble mission in which they were engaged will give assurance to their families, and to the families of those still Missing in Action, that this Nation will never forget. Today, with the memory of their professionalism and dedication firmly in our hearts, we rededicate ourselves to this humanitarian mission.

FAMILY AND VETERANS GROUPS OFFER CONDOLENCES

Throughout the weekend and on Monday, many veterans and family organizations offered statements about the loss of lives in Saturday's helicopter crash in Vietnam. Among them were these from the National League of POW/MIA Families and from the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

POW/MIA FAMILIES MOURN LOSS

The POW/MIA families were deeply saddened to learn of the tragic loss of seven American servicemen and nine Vietnamese on a survey mission to aid in accounting for our missing loved ones. We offer heartfelt condolences to the families of these men and share their loss. We agree with President and Mrs. Bush that these families "know better than most the contribution their loved ones made in bringing closure to scores of families across America." The loss to the POW/MIA community is real and will not be forgotten by the families of those still missing and our nation whose noble mission they served.

The League is also gratified and encouraged by Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld's assurance that the accounting mission will continue. His commitment that the Joint Task Force-Full Accounting, Central Identification Laboratory and others involved will proceed with investigations and excavations and "continue to search for those still missing in Southeast Asia" was welcome and greatly appreciated.

VFW GRIEVES LOSS OF 16 KILLED IN MIA SEARCH IN VIETNAM

The helicopter crash on Saturday in central Vietnam in which 16 U.S. and Vietnamese service personnel were killed -members of a team searching for the remains of missing Americans from the Vietnam War-deeply saddened officials of the Veterans of Foreign Wars who have worked closely with the team since 1992.

VFW Commander in Chief John F. Gwizdak, of Stockbridge, Ga. said, "The VFW is deeply saddened by this tragic accident and the loss of life of both American and Vietnamese personnel. Over the years, we have come to know and admire the dedication of the team members and their mission. Working in difficult terrain and under dangerous conditions they persevered. Today, as we grieve for their families and fellow team members, we honor their deeds and accomplishments."

Gwizdak, an Army Vietnam veteran, praised the work of the multi-service team of both the Joint Task Force-Full Accounting and the U.S Army's Central Identification Laboratory. "The American people owe a debt of gratitude for the great work that these joint teams have accomplished. Since the end of the Vietnam War, the remains of some 600 American military personnel formerly listed as missing have been identified and returned to their families. They have helped bring closure to many families who have mourned the loss of a loved one. Today, in their hour of need, we offer our sincerest condolences to the families and loved ones of those lost in this tragedy."

The helicopter, on a flight to Hue, crashed into a mountain in Quang Binh Province near Vietnam's main north-south road, Highway One-some 280 miles south of Hanoi.

The Joint Task Force-Full Accounting, based at Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii, oversees recovery operations for remains from the Vietnam War in Southeast Asia.

Pictures/Jpegs taken from other sources on the internet

In Memory of our Fallen Comrades
Joint Task Force - Full Accounting Crew
Det 2 - Hanoi, SRV -- Cont'd