THE WALL OF FACES

A good friend. I think of your friendship often. Rest In Peace my friend.

A grateful citizen just wanting to honor and say "thank you" for your sacrifice.

Thank you for your service to our country so long ago sir. As long as you are remembered you will always be with us....

My father served during Vietnam & while training in Germany, found a Zippo lighter with a map of Germany on one side, & Tony's name on the other. He kept it, always hoping to find the owner or its next of kin. My father died in 2017 but I finally tracked down Tony's brother a couple years later & returned the lighter. Rest in peace, Tony. You have been a part of my family for decades.

On August 8, 1966, a U.S. Army helicopter UH-1C (tail number 65-09546) from C Troop, 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division, was conducting a night flight in marginal weather in preparation for the following day’s operations when it crashed and burned in Pleiku Province, RVN. The pilot reportedly lost visual contact with the ground due to weather conditions. Four crewmen were lost in the incident. They included aircraft commander MAJ Gerald S. Simons, co-pilot 1LT Richard W. Meehan, crew chief PFC Leslie D. Nickels, and gunner PFC Tony L. Bakke. After failing to return to base, a search and rescue (SAR) aircraft was launched. The helicopter, a U.S. Army UH-1D (tail number 65-09675) from B Troop, 1/9th Cavalry, was diverted during the SAR mission to Landing Zone Oasis southwest of Pleiku due to poor weather when it flew into fog clouds and also crashed and burned. There were no survivors. The lost crew included aircraft commander WO1 John J. Becker Jr., co-pilot WO1 Eric R. Nordman, crew chief PFC Frank L. Blevins, and gunner PFC Andy Johnson Jr. It was believed that the pilots experienced vertigo resulting in the loss. [Taken from coffeltdatabase.org and vhpa.org]