Date Posted:Sat, November 11 2006, 16:15:55 Author:Jeff Northridge Author Host/IP: dialup-4.131.210.216.Dial1.SanJose1.Level3.net / 4.131.210.216 Subject: Re: Does anyone remember my husband In reply to:
Gail Bryan
's message, "Does anyone remember my husband" on Sat, November 11 2006, 11:12:43
Howdy Gail;
SP4 Lionel John Bryan, Jr.'s Army Serial Nummber is RA 12672207 (which means that he enlisted) and his MOS was 71K3P (Pesonnel Manager Specialist, airborne qualified). He was born on 2/28/44 and his hometown of record is New York, NY. His tour of duty in Vietnam commenced on 8/19/65 and he was assigned to the 478th Aviation Company, 1st Cavalry Division. He was KIA somewhere in South Vietnam (this was before the Department of Defense started to specify provinces for our KIAs) on 1/5/66 due to "Hostile, Helicopter--Non-Crew, Air Loss, Crash on Land." SP4 Bryan's religious preference was Episcopal/Anglcan, the Army says that he was single (which clashes with what you say), and his body was recovered.
According to the 478th website at http://www.vhpamuseum.org/companies/478avco/478avco.html , the company was equipped with CH-54A Tarhe (Skycrane) helicopters, but there is no guarantee that that was the type of aircraft involved in the incident. What makes you suspect that the incident was not due to hostile causes? All official sources are in agreement that the cause of death was due to hostile fire of some sort and SP4 Bryan was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart which cannot be done if the cause of death is non-hostile.
You say that the incident occured near An Khe. Well, An Khe is about half-way between Pleiku and Qui Nhon in the Central Highlands of Vietnam along Hwy 19. For some good maps of the place as it was circa 1972 see the first row of http://www.nexus.net/~911gfx/mapnd4909.html . I'll look into this case a little more. The Vietnam Helicopter Pilots' Association posts accident reports for all helicopter crashes that occured in Vietnam and there might be some additional information available from that source. Have a nice Veterans' Day.
