THE WALL OF FACES

On the remembrance of your 70th birthday, your sacrifice is not forgotten.

HOOAH

Dear WO John Lynch, Thank you for your service as an Utility/Observation Helicopter Pilot. Saying thank you isn't enough, but it is from the heart. Memorial Day is soon, but like none other. Time passes quickly. Please watch over America, it stills needs your strength, courage, guidance and faithfulness. Rest in peace with the angels.

Chief Lynch,

I had the honor reading your name aloud this evening at the 35th Anniversary of the Vietnam Veteran Memorial. I am eternally grateful to call you a brother.
Wayne Knutson
1SG(R), USA

Growing up in Porter Ranch, Northridge California I knew John's younger brother Ted and spent many a day at junior highschool with Ted. I remember John being pretty busy with school himself and I'm not certain when he enlisted. His father and mother were pretty conservative and I believe his father was a officer in World War II. I was a little wild in the seventies. I distinctly remember a time as we were getting a little older,being perhaps 14 years old, that Ted and I were comparing our biceps and John was out in front of the house. Ted and I showed our biceps to him and he kind of smiled. We asked him to show his muscle and he flexed his arm. I just remember the slight smile on John's face.John turned to the side and gave us a arm flex pose showing us his muscle . He was a little older than us but occasionally he would interact in a friendly way. I was real sorry to hear of his death when I was 16 years old. He was apparently in a maneuver with a helicopter during training and lost control. It was a sad time indeed.

On January 5, 1971, a U.S. Army helicopter UH-1C (tail number 66-15040) from the 57th Assault Helicopter Company crashed while conducting a test flight. There were no survivors. The lost crewmen included pilot WO1 John W. Lynch III and aircraft mechanics SGT Douglas B. Kent and SP4 Larry O. Harden. The following is a summary of the incident: The pilot (WO1 Lynch) called the tower for takeoff clearance at 1930 hours to conduct a night test flight to determine if changing the main rotor blades had eliminated the 1 to 1 vertical vibration noted in the 2408-13. He requested closed traffic for runway 05 right, and completed one low approach past the tower. Afterwards, the pilot requested the second one and he was cleared to continue. This portion of the flight was uneventful. As he passed the tower for the second time, his altitude was estimated at 80 feet AGL and airspeed in excess of 80 knots. The aircraft initiated a sharp left climbing turn to the crosswind when suddenly upon reaching approximately 300 feet AGL a brief expletive was heard over the tower radio and the altitude dropped severely. The aircraft then turned 180 degrees and impacted the ground, nose first, at an angle of about 80 degrees, and it never rolled out of the turn. The airspeed at the time of the impact as shown on the airspeed indicator was 130 knots and the time was 1940 hours. The fuselage burst into a ball of flames and burned completely. All three occupants were killed from contact injuries incurred from the crash landing. Their bodies were later recovered. [Taken from vhpa.org]