THE WALL OF FACES

A butterfly lights beside us like a sunbeam
And for a brief moment its glory
and beauty belong to our world
But then it flies again
And though we wish it could have stayed...
We feel lucky to have seen it.

Been a long time since Cam Rahn old friend. I remember our sitting together on a hilltop long after midnight trying to tune in a chinky transistor radio..

On the remembrance of your 91st birthday, your sacrifice is not forgotten.

HOOAH

Dear Tsgt John Chappell,
Thank you for your service. I do not know your MOS. Your 87th birthday just passed. Happy Birthday. This is the month that we remember all those who have passed-on. We remember you. It is so important for us all to acknowledge the sacrifices of those like you who answered our nation's call. Please watch over America, it stills needs your strength, courage and faithfulness. Rest in peace with the angels.

The first AC-47D Spooky Gunships arrived in Vietnam in November 1965. Their guns had been removed in order to lighten the aircraft for the trans-Pacific flight. The guns would not arrive until a month later. In the meantime, the aircraft were put to work on courier and cargo flights. The 4th Air Commando Squadron (ACS) lost their first aircraft, an AC-47D (serial number 43-49492), on a night time cross country courier flight between Tan Son Nhut and Phan Rang on December 17, 1965 when it was struck by ground fire. The wreckage was located on December 23rd. The bodies of the nine men on board the aircraft, four 4th ACS flight crew members and 5 passengers, were recovered. They included pilot MAJ Robert W. Abbot, co-pilot MAJ Robert L. Abernathy, navigator 1LT Francis R. Buckley, flight engineer A1C Claude W. Mathews, and passengers TSGT John M. Chappell, TSGT Thomas N. Sloan, SSGT Ralph L. Hinson, and A1C Johnson A. Meade. [Taken from ac47-gunships.com and aviation-safety.net]