Heitman, Steven Wayne
Army Staff sergeant
Steven Wayne Heitman, age 24, from Indianapolis, Indiana.
Service era: Vietnam
School: Shortridge High graduate
Spouse: Marjorie
Date of death: March 13, 1968
Death details: On March 13, 1968, a UH-1H Iroquois (tail number 67-17254) carrying four crew members and six passengers was conducting a round-trip logistics flight from Camp Evans to Phu Bai Air Base, South Vietnam. On the return leg, three to five miles southeast of Camp Evans, the helicopter was hit by enemy ground fire, which subsequently forced its landing. After the landing, five of the ten individuals proceeded on foot in the direction of Camp Evens and arrived safely; however, the remaining five formed a security perimeter around the downed aircraft and were immediately involved in a heavy firefight with the enemy. In a later search of the area, U.S. forces recovered the remains of two men from a shallow grave, but the other three members were missing.
Specialist 5 Steven Wayne Heitman, who joined the U.S. Army from Indiana, served with Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 9th Infantry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division. He was a passenger on board the helicopter when it was forced down, and he remained at the helicopter with the security detail. He was subsequently killed by the enemy and his body was not recovered. After the incident, the Army promoted Specialist 5 Heitman to the rank of Staff Sergeant. Today, Staff Sergeant Heitman is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, findagrave.com, Indianapolis New (1974)
