Kennedy, James Edward
Army Staff sergeant

James Edward Kennedy from Pine Hill, New Jersey.

Date of death: December 22, 1969
Death details:  On December 22, 1969, an UH-1C Iroquois (tail number 66-00587) carrying four crew members was on a combat support mission over Cambodia. During the mission, the Iroquois crashed and burned in Ratanakiri Province, in the vicinity of (GC) YA 678 975. The aircraft commander, pilot, and crew chief escaped from the wreck and searched the crash site and surrounding area, but found no trace of the door gunner. Shortly after the crash, a rescue helicopter arrived and lowered ropes with recovery rigs for the three survivors. While being hoisted to the helicopter, the crew chief and the pilot fell from the rigs back to the ground and could not be recovered at the time. The rescue helicopter departed with aircraft commander it had successfully retrieved, and another rescue team was later sent to the crash site to search for the crew chief and pilot who fell from their rigs and the door gunner who remained missing after the crash. They succeeded in recovering the crew chief, but could not locate the pilot or door gunner. Further search efforts were not possible due to the enemy presence in the area. The pilot and door gunner from the Iroquois’ crew remain unaccounted for.

Specialist Four James Edward Kennedy entered the U.S. Army from New Jersey and was a member of the 57th Aviation Company, 17th Aviation Group, 1st Aviation Brigade. He was the door gunner aboard this Iroquois when it crashed, and could not be found by the other three crew members following the crash. Further attempts to recover his remains have been unsuccessful. Subsequent to the incident, and while carried in the status of missing in action (MIA), the U.S. Army promoted Specialist Four Kennedy to the rank of Staff Sergeant (SSG). Today, Staff Sergeant Kennedy is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency