THE WALL OF FACES

I served with Steve from June 1968. I remember when he introduced himself to me -- he mentioned that his middle name was Morris (my first name). We both were the oldest of our siblings. He was so friendly and easy to know. Everyone liked him.

Steve called our platoon "The Good, The Mad Dogs, and The Ugly". (Remember Clint Eastwood's movie?)

I had been assigned to the flight that night but Steve insisted on taking it because I had covered for him while he took R&R. He wasn't scheduled to fly until the next day but he was the kind of person who wouldn't take advantage of another so in appreciate of what I did for him Steve litterly ran to the airfield to catch that flight.

I am forever indebted -- I will never forget.

Come home soon my friend!

I have not forgotten you. I chair the Adoption Committee for The National League of Families of Prisoners of War and Missing in Action in Southeast Asia. We will always remember the 1,889 Americans still unaccounted for in Southeast Asia and the thousands of others that lost their lives. We will not stop our efforts until all of you are home where you belong.

We need to reach the next generation so that they will carry on when our generation is no longer able. To do so, we are attempting to locate photographs of all the missing. If you are reading this remembrance and have a photo and/or memory of this missing American that you would like to share for our project, please contact me at:

Candace Lokey
PO Box 206
Freeport, PA 16229
[email protected]

If you are not familiar with our organization, please visit our web site at :

www.pow-miafamilies.org

While American boys gave their lives up for their country in Vietnam, teenage girls back home found a streak of hope in wearing the names of those men MIA or POW on their wrists. For years, my mother wore a bracelet with S/Sgt. Steven Hastings name engraved in it, always on the lookout for any notification that he'd been rescued or found. Even when she wondered whether or not she's gotten a bracelet with a name that had been made-up, she kept Steven in her prayers. Last year, after reading an article about a woman who met in-person the name whom she wore around her wrist, my mother remembered her bracelet and told me the story. I fell in love with her story instantly, and wear his name on my wrist each day as she did when she was my age. Finding Steven Hasting on the virtual wall suddenly made the name I see every day, the same name my mother wore, come alive. It was incredible to finally know a simple piece of his story. Wherever Hastings may be now, he's still with me every day.

CHIEF WARRANT OFFICER
WILLIAM FERNAN
AGE 26

SPECIALIST 6
DONALD RANDALL FOWLER
AGE 19

STAFF SERGEANT
STEVEN MORRIS HASTINGS
AGE 19

CAPTAIN
PETER JOHN RUSSELL
AGE 21


240TH ASSAULT HELICOPTER COMPANY
214TH AVIATION BATTALION
12TH AVIATION GROUP


ON AUGUST 1, 1968

THESE ARMY SERVICEMEN COMPRISED THE CREW OF

ONE UH1C HELICOPTER IN A FLIGHT OF TWO ON A

COMBAT MISSION BUT DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER

AND POOR VISABILITY THE MISSION WAS ABORTED.

THEIR HELICOPTER BECAME SEPARATED WHILE THEY

ATTEMPTED TO RETURN TO THE SONG BE AIRSTRIP.

ONE AIRCRAFT CRASHED INTO THE TREES AND THE

CREWMEMBERS WERE EXTRACTED THE FOLLOWING MORNING.

RADIO CONTACT WAS LOST WITH THE FIRST HELICOPTER

AFTER THEIR LAST TRANSMISSION AT 2025 HRS.

AT THAT TIME THE HELICOPTER COMMANDER INDICATED

THAT HE WAS DIVERTING TO BINH HOA AIR BASE

RATHER THAN CONTINUING ON TO SONG BE BASE.

WHEN THE AIRCRAFT FAILED TO ARRIVE AT EITHER

BINH HOA OR SONG BE SEARCH EFFORTS WERE BEGUN

AT DAYLIGHT AND CONTINUED FOR THREE DAYS.

ON AUGUST 6, WRECKAGE OF THE HELICOPTER WAS

DISCOVERED AND ON AUGUST 21, A RECOVERY EFFORT

WAS CONDUCTED IN THE AREA OF THE AIRCRAFT AND

IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE HELICOPTER HAD

CRASHED BUT NOT BURNED. DURING THE RECOVERY

EFFORT PORTIONS OF REMAINS WERE FOUND THAT WERE

IDENTIFIED AS CWO FERNAN, ALONG WITH SOME

PERSONAL EFFECTS WHICH WERE PROVEN TO HAVE

BELONGED TO HIM. ONLY FLIGHT HELMETS WERE

FOUND FOR THE OTHER THREE INDIVIDUALS BUT NO

TRACE OF THEM WAS EVER FOUND IN SUBSEQUENT

SEARCH EFFORTS AND THEY WERE CLASSIFIED AS

MISSING IN ACTION



YOU ARE NOT FORGOTTEN
NOR SHALL YOU EVER BE