24 March 1966 Memorial On 3 November 1965, 4 men were killed during an attack on their search and destroy operations patrol near their patrol base located 19 kilometers south of Duc Co, Pleiku Province, Republic of South Vietnam. These events happened during operations in the Ia Drang Valley. SSG Bess was killed by small arms fire when hit in the neck and shoulder. The men who killed were: A Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division SSG Samuel Bess, Sanford, North Carolina (Bronze Star) SSG Gary W. Platt, Boulder, Colorado (Bronze Star) C Troop, 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division SFC Florendo B. Pascual, Honolulu, Hawai (Gunshot Wound on Patrol) PFC James Ray Parrett, Columbia City, Indiana (Injuries on Patrol) SSG Bess is buried in White Oak AME Zion Cemetery, Sanford North Carolina The 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry, 1st Air Cavalry Division held an 'In memoriam' program for the men from the battalion who were killed in action during the period of November 3, 1965 to March 24, 1966. The men who were memorialized were: A Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division 2LT Stuart King Tweedy, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (GSW Near LZ Tonto) SSG Samuel Bess, Sanford, North Carolina (Bronze Star) SSG Dale Leroy Fugate, Chicago Illinois (Claymore Detonation) SSG Gary W. Platt, Boulder, Colorado (Gunshot Wound on Patrol) (Bronze Star) SGT James Escol Thompson, Cincinnati, Ohio (GSW Near LZ Tonto) PFC Thom Thurston Osborn, Worcester, Massachusetts (Ground Vehicle Crash) B Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division SFC Jimmie Lyn Brooks, Cottage Hill, Florida (GSW Near LZ Tonto) PFC Edmund Maceo Masterson, Detroit, Michigan (GSW Near LZ Tonto) PFC William Dion Mc Killop, Columbus, Ohio (GSW Near LZ Tonto) PVT James Edward Flagg, Luxora, Arkansas (GSW Near LZ Tonto) (Silver Star) C Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division SP4 Wilbur William Ivanov, Windsor, Vermont (Helicopter crash) PFC Nels William Swanson, Chicago, Illinois (Gunshot Wounds) (Silver Star) D Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division SGT Gunder Peter Richotte Gunderson, Walhalla, North Dakota (Premature Det 81mm Mortar) PFC Richard Eugene George, San Diego, California (Premature Det 81mm Mortar) PFC Carlos Randall Hatcher, Norcross, Georgia (Gunshot Wounds) - - The Virtual Wall, September 25, 2014

Contact Us

© Copyright 1997-2019 www.VirtualWall.org, Ltd ®(TM)

Last update 08/15/2019