Nelson, James Raymond
Army Staff sergeant

James Raymond Nelson from Ludington, Michigan, Mason county.

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: June 11, 1967
Death details: On June 11, 1967, a UH-1D Iroquois (tail number 63-12958, call sign “Bamboo Viper 47”) carrying three crew members and two passengers departed Landing Zone Uplift for Qui Nhon Air Field on an operational mission over South Vietnam. The helicopter encountered bad weather, and radioed for assistance in determining his position. A search and rescue (SAR) team was dispatched to lead the helicopter to a safe airfield but could not locate it. The pilot of the Iroquois then radioed that he was out of fuel and was going to make a water landing, but the helicopter was not heard from again. SAR efforts continued for two days but found no signs of the helicopter or any of the passengers or crew.

Sergeant James Raymond Nelson, who joined the U.S. Army from Michigan, served with Company C, 227th Aviation Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division. He was the crew chief aboard the Iroquois when it disappeared, and his remains were not recovered. After the incident, the Army promoted SGT Nelson to the rank of Staff Sergeant (SSG). Today, Staff Sergeant Nelson is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency