THE WALL OF FACES

Say not in grief he is no more, but live in thankfulness that he was.

Dear CWO Henry Knight, Thank you for your service as a Medium Transport Helicopter Pilot. I am glad that you were identified in 2001. Welcome Home. Saying thank you isn't enough, but it is from the heart. Happy New Year in heaven. The time passes quickly. Please watch over America, it stills needs your strength, courage, guidance and faithfulness. Rest in peace with the angels.

Unfortunately I never met Hank but I knew his mother Georgia very well. She was my dad's sister. We are very proud of Hank. My name is Bobby Parris and my dad was Jim Parris.

You may find help or info from the Eastern Band of Cherokee in North Carolina. They are very shy, and guard each member of tribe's privacy. I am just letting you know. From what I can remember from the conversation with his wife. She said, "He was an outgoing type of person, very intelligent, personable, and friendly."

The CH-47 "Chinook" helicopter was one of the workhorses of the Army's air fleet. As a cargo lift, the Chinook could carry up to 28,000 pounds on its external cargo hook, and is credited with the recovery of 11,500 disabled aircraft worth more than $3 billion. As troop carrier, the aircraft could be fitted with 24 litters for medical evacuation, or carry 33-44 troops in addition to the crew. On one occasion, a Chinook evacuated 147 refugees and their possessions on a single flight. The Chinook could be outfitted for bombing missions, dropping tear gas or napalm in locations fixed wing aircraft could not reach. The big bird could carry a large cargo of supplies. On October 20, 1968, aircraft commander CW3 Charles E. Deitsch, pilot WO1 Henry C. Knight, crewchief SP5 Charles H. Meldahl, flight engineer SP4 Jerry G. Bridges, and door gunner SP4 Ronald Stanton departed Dong Ba Thien Airfield, South Vietnam, in a CH-47A helicopter (serial #66-19053) on a resupply mission to Ban Me Thuot, South Vietnam. Deitsch radioed at 0700 hours on October 20 that his aircraft was over the Ninh Hoa Valley. That was the last anyone heard of the CH-47. At about 0800 hours, it was determined that the helicopter was overdue. An intensive search effort was made, but no wreckage was ever found of the CH-47, and search efforts were concluded on October 28. Villagers were later canvassed throughout the Ninh Ho Valley, and literature was distributed asking about the crash of the Chinook, but no new information was ever discovered. Between 1984 and 1994,Vietnamese residents and refugees offered information and material evidence potentially linked with the crash. In 1994, the crash site was located and in 1995, during the 33rd Joint Field Activity, the site was excavated, yielding additional information. In October 2000, the investigation was completed and it determined that all members of the crew went down with the helicopter and did not survive the crash. All of the crew was also identified through DNA. [Taken from pownetwork.org]