VHPA’ers in the News E x c e r pt e d f r o m t h e W ah p e t o n Da il y N e w s , N o v 1 3 , 2012. By Ca rrie McDer mo tt, Repo rter
Yesterday just about the whole town of Breckenridge turned out to formally dedicate the towns new Veteran’s Memorial Park. Undeterred by the single-digit temperatures, the crowd cheered the speakers and the Veterans in attendance, especially the men that flew the Cobra that serves as the centerpiece of the park. The day started with a Veterans Day program at Breckenridge High School which featured three special guests — two pilots who flew our Cobra attack helicopter in Vietnam, Nick Lappos and Mel Walker and also Phyllis Rosenow, from Rosemont, Minnesota who’s brother Tom was killed in Vietnam while flying another Cobra with D troop, 1/1 Cav, the unit our aircraft was assigned to. The first speaker was Mel Walker, a U.S. Army aviator who piloted the Cobra gunship currently on display at our new Veteran’s Memorial park. Mr. Walker served back-to-back tours in Vietnam from 1968-1970, and his rank was Chief Warrant Officer. He returned to civilian life and continued service in the U.S. Army Reserves after ending his combat tours of duty. Next to speak was Nick Lappos, an aerospace engineer and a former U.S. Army pilot who also flew our Cobra while in Vietnam. Mr. Lappos has flown more than 70 helicopter aircraft and holds three helicopter world records for speed, has worked for Bell Helicopter and Gulfstream Aerospace Corp., and was the chief research and development test pilot for Sikorsky for more than 27 years. Both men spoke of their Vietnam War experiences and what Veteran’s Day now means to them The park dedication kicked off right on schedule at 1:00 PM, “In the heat of the day” said a visitor from Texas referring to the nine degree reading on the thermometers. The high school bank played patriotic songs, the Mayor of Breckenridge, Clifford W. Barth spoke a few words but the day mostly belonged to the Chief of Police, Nate Harder; the man most responsible for establishing our Veteran’s Memorial park. Chief Harder, a former US Marine first sold the idea for park to the City of Breckenridge and then was instrumental in acquiring the Cobra and securing the thousands of dollars in private funding to both refurbish and display the aircraft, and to construct the park’s parking area, buildings, lighting and landscaping. The crowd also recognized the eight Veterans there to reconnect and celebrate the Dedication of Cobra 650. All eight of them served in Vietnam with D troop, 1/1 Cav, the same unit that Cobra 650 flew with. While with the unit, all the men were pilots of, or served as a crewmember of the either a Cobra gunship, a venerable UH-1 Huey, or an OH-6 Scout helicopter, the
D/1/1 Cav Veterans (LtoR) David Adams, Duane Sather, Gary Krehbiel, Dale McKnight, D.J. Miner, Nick Lappos, Mel Walker and Gary Hickman attend the Dedication of Breckenbridge, Minnesota’s Veterans Memorial Park.
Cobra 650, bearing its Vietnam paint scheme is now on an eternal “gun run” for the citizens of the twin cities of Breckenridge, Minnesota and Wahpeton, North Dakota.
three types of helicopters flown by their Unit. Also involved in the ceremony were a four-man U.S. Marine Corps Honor Guard that presented the colors, Mark Manning, the pastor at Breckenridge Lutheran Church who led the crowd in an invocation, and Wayne Gilbertson, the Minnesota American Legion vice commander who also gave a short speech. “Taps” was played to close out the ceremony.
Soldiers Missing from Vietnam War Identified The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office has announced that the remains of Captain James M. Johnstone and Major James l. Whited, both from Oklahoma, who were was lost on Nov. 19, 1966, when their OV-1A Mohawk aircraft crashed in Attapu Province, Laos, were recovered on June 5, 2009 and identified on July 9, 2012. In mid-October, Joint Field Activities (JFAs) resumed in Laos and Vietnam. The level of operations continues to be relatively high, especially in Vietnam, though logistics issues still pose challenges in Laos. Time is growing short for getting answers before witnesses are no longer available and remains have disintegrated completely due to acidic soil in the region. The number of Americans announced as returned and identified since the end of the Vietnam War in 1975 is now 928; another 63 US personnel, recovered post-incident and identified before the end of the war, bring the total to 991. Of the 1,655 unreturned American veterans from the Vietnam War, our POW/MIAs, 90% were lost in Vietnam or in areas of Laos and Cambodia under Vietnam’s wartime control. Detailed numbers are Vietnam – 1,280 (VN-470, VS-810); Laos – 314; Cambodia – 54; Peoples Republic of China territorial waters – 7. Over 450 of these were over-water losses.
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