Ralph D. Johnson & April 22 1966 Crash

Jean Johnson Marston says, "Once in awhile, when I get reflective about my life, I start Googling the date (Friday, April 22, 1966) and location (Oklahoma) of the military plane crash that took my brother's life.

Yesterday, I came upon the American Flyers Memorial Park site, where they asked about a survival list. My brother Ralph D. Johnson, age 19, from Yonkers, New York survived the initial crash but died on Mother's Day, May 8, 1966, 16 days later. There was no feedback of information in those days. No one ever knew he died. So he should not be on the list.

"My parents, Bill and Ann Johnson flew to his bedside at Brooke Army Medical Center. I believe that is part of Fort Sam Houston Medical Center. I only found out about the amazing Memorial Butch Bridges put together about 20 months ago. I have been saving up and plan to visit Oklahoma this Memorial Day. My brother's death shaped my life good and bad. Now with that Memorial, there has finally been closure for me, something to the end of my mother's life, she asked for ... and never had.

"I remember my brother told my Mom, "It was awful." He woke up propped against a tree with a deceased soldier on his lap. It was raining and everything was on fire. There was a wonderful Nurse or maybe a local mother that spent some time with my brother. She wrote some comforting words to our family. I don't remember her name but know that we Thank You!"

WWII - Captain Pierce & Lt. Lester's aircraft 41-34770

"Six B-26 Martin "Marauders" of the 585th Squadron, 394th Bombardment Group, were flying, July 12, 1943, in a loose, three element, two plane formation from MacDill Field, Tampa, Florida to Ardmore Army Air Field, Oklahoma.

The 394th was in the process of moving troops and aircraft to their new assignment. Pilots and crews were flying the 33 aircraft of the 585th, 586th and 587th Squadrons to Ardmore while the support personnel were traveling to Ardmore on two troop trains.

The six aircraft were flying under “radio silence” and visual flight rules at 2,500 feet. Captain Edward B. Saxon was leading the No. 1 element. Captain Shelton H. Pierce and Lt. William M. Lester, co-pilot, were on his left wing and Lt. William T. White, Jr. was on his right wing. Lt. George C. Pinyerd was leading the No. 3 element with Lt. Francis M. Kirby on his left wing.

The planes were to land at DeRidder Army Air Base before proceeding to Ardmore. Prior to their arrival there, Captain Pierce and Lt. Lester's aircraft, 41-34770, and Lt. Pinyerd's plane dropped out of formation. Due to radio silence, Captain Saxon physically signaled them to return to their positions. He checked a short time later and had four planes on his right, assuming they had followed his instructions. When they landed at DeRidder, it was discovered that 41-34770 was missing. The aircraft had crashed approximately 26-miles southeast of Harding Field, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. All seven crew members perished. Accident investigators could not discover the cause of the crash, declaring it "100% undetermined."

Captain William (Bill) R. Heck

Captain William (Bill) R. Heck, 25, Middletown, Ohio, was pilot of B-17G, (42-30481), the aircraft that was cut-in-two in a mid-air collision near Mill Creek, Oklahoma, February 12, 1944.

Ten crewmembers died as a result as the aircraft plummeted to earth; One member, Cpl. Joseph (Jack) W. McClanahan, the tail gunner, survived without injury, after parachuting from the severed tail section.

The 12 planes, in tight formation, were turning and descending from 14,500 feet when the collision occurred under turbulent air conditions. They had been in the air for four-plus hours and were returning to Ardmore Army Air Field.

The other B-17G, though severely damaged, landed safely at Ardmore. None of its crew was injured. Several weeks after the accident, the crew was shipped to England, serving with the 8th Air Force. A few days after arriving, the pilot of the surviving aircraft, Lt. Verne H. Lewis, flying as co-pilot with another crew for experience, was shot down, June 14, 1944, and became a prisoner of war.

U. S. Casualties of Iraq War

There have been 4,469 coalition deaths -- 4,155 Americans, 2 Australians, 1 Azerbaijani, 176 Britons, 13 Bulgarians, 1 Czech, 7 Danes, 2 Dutch, 2 Estonians, 1 Fijian, 5 Georgians, 1 Hungarian, 33 Italians, 1 Kazakh, 1Korean, 3 Latvians, 22 Poles, 3 Romanians, 5 Salvadoran, 4 Slovaks, 11 Spaniards, 2 Thai and 18 Ukrainians -- in the war in Iraq as of September 10, 2008, according to a CNN count.

The list below is the names of the soldiers, Marines, airmen, sailors and Coast Guardsmen whose deaths have been reported by their country's governments. The list also includes 7 employees of the U.S. Defense Department.

At least 30,634 U.S. troops have been wounded in action, according to the Pentagon. View casualties in the war in Afghanistan and examine U.S. war casualties dating back to the Revolutionary War. To view a list of US Casualties Click this LINK!

American Flyers Memorial Park

Gary Simmons In Memory of… list of soldiers who lost their lives in service for their country.

American Flyers Memorial Park -- Information on Flight 280/D that crashed April 22, 1966. 15 miles NE of Ardmore, Oklahoma.

On Monday, March 7, 2000 digital photos were taken of the crash area on Goddard’s Ranch. The main area of the crash was east of Highway 177, southwest down the valley toward the Ardmore Airpark and the NE to SW runway they were trying to reach. You can view photos of the site at American Flyers Memorial Park website.

Our Little Memorial Blog

Our Little Memorial Blog is an extension of the original Remembrance Memorial Park (RMP) website - www.brightok.net/~wwwafm/. We are making this an interactive part of the original RMP website to be used by everyone to leave stories, memories of their friends, families who have died and who are listed here. If your see a photo of a veteran, or know of someone who is NOT listed here, please leave/post your comments . AND… SEND us a photo of to add to Our Little Memorial Blog. Thanks for your help in keeping their memories alive!

Ardmore Man’s 3-Year Quest

Ardmore Man’s Three-year Quest for Airpark Memorial To Be Realized At Ceremony -- By Leah J. Simmons, Lifestyles Editor, Sunday, May 25, 2003.

Ardmore historian, Gary Simmons, had a quest – to memorialize all the individuals who died while serving at the Ardmore Army Air Field and Air Force Base during World War II and Korea.

His three-year pursuit will culminate at 11 a.m. Monday with a dedication ceremony at the Ardmore Industrial Airpark and an unveiling of a monument listing the 52 names of military personnel killed in training while serving in Ardmore.

He got the idea after attending a similar ceremony dedicated to those killed here in an American Flyers crash (1966).

Simmons said his part of it came in when we had the American Flyers dedication in June 2000. He got with Butch Bridges and got the names of the people who died on the base during Korea and World War II.