AH-1G Cobra 12 February 1971

McLeod, Arthur Edward
Army Chief warrant officer

Arthur Edward McLeod, age 24, from Bay Shore, New York, Suffolk county.

Service era: Vietnam

Date of death: Friday, February 12, 1971
Death details: On August 6, 1999, Joint Task Force-Full Accounting (JTF-FA, now DPAA) identified the remains of Chief Warrant Officer Arthur Edward McLeod, missing from the Vietnam War.

Chief Warrant Officer McLeod joined the U.S. Army from New York and was a member of Troop C, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. On February 12, 1971, he piloted an AH-1G Cobra on an armed reconnaissance mission near Quang Tri, South Vietnam. During the mission, the helicopter was hit and damaged by enemy ground fire; the crew attempted to return to base at Khe Sanh, but the aircraft caught fire en route, then crashed and exploded when the crew attempted an emergency landing. Chief Warrant Officer McLeod was killed in the incident, and his remains could not be recovered at the time. In the 1990s, joint search teams revisited the crash site and recovered remains which were later identified as those of CWO McLeod.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, findagrave.com 

Wilkinson, Clyde David
Army Captain

Clyde David Wilkinson, age 25, from Mount Carmel, Illinois, Wabash County

Service era: Vietnam

Spouse: Married

Children: Tiffany, 3; Tracey, 1

Schools: Mount Carmel High, Shelbyville HIgh graduate

Date of death: Friday, February 12, 1971

Death details:  On August 6, 1999, Joint Task Force-Full Accounting (JTF-FA, now DPAA) identified the remains of Captain Clyde David Wilkinson, missing from the Vietnam War.

Captain Wilkinson joined the U.S. Army from Texas and was a member of Troop C, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. On February 12, 1971, he was the aircraft commander aboard an AH-1G Cobra (serial number unknown) on an armed reconnaissance mission near Quang Tri, South Vietnam. During the mission, the helicopter was hit and damaged by enemy ground fire. The crew attempted to return to base at Khe Sanh, but the aircraft caught fire and crashed and exploded during an attempted emergency landing. CPT Wilkinson was killed in the incident but his remains could not be recovered at the time. During the 1990s, joint search teams revisited the crash site and eventually recovered remains that were identified as those of CPT Wilkinson.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, findagrave.com, Mount Carmel Daily Republican-Register (1971)

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