SSG Douglas Randolph Blodgett
Name: Douglas Randolph Blodgett
Rank/Branch: E4/US Army
Unit: Company A, 228th Aviation Battalion (Assault Support Helicopter), 11th
Aviation Group, 1st Cavalry Division
Date of Birth: 01 May 1947 (Ft. Belvoir VA)
Home City of Record: Alexandria VA
Date of Loss: 19 April 1968
Country of Loss: South Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 162247N 1070658E (YD290105)
Status (in 1973): Missing In Action
Category: 4
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: CH47A
Refno: 1134
Other Personnel In Incident: William R. Dennis; Jesus A. Gonzales (missing
from CH47A, coordinates YD290105 pilot and co-pilot survived); Michael J.
Wallace, Anthony F. Housh; (missing from CH47, coordinates YD291087-LZ
Tiger; pilot, co-pilot and gunner survived); Arthur J. Lord; Charles W.
Millard; Philip R. Shafer; Michael R. Werdehoff (missing on CH54,
coordinates YD255095-LZ Tiger)
REMARKS:
Source: Compiled from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S.
Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families,
published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK in 1998.
SYNOPSIS: On April 19, 1968 three Army helicopters were shot down in the A Shau Valley of South Vietnam. All three were making supply runs to Landing Zone Tiger in Quang Tri Province. Five men survived the three crashes, and nine men remain missing.
The CH47A on which Douglas Blodgett was a crewman, William Dennis was flight engineer, and Jesus Gonzales was crew chief was re-supplying ammunition at the LZ when it received small arms fire from the ground and crashed. The pilot and co-pilot were able to crawl away, but the rest of the crew was never found. They were declared Missing In Action.
The CH47 on which Anthony Housh was flight engineer and Michael Wallace was crew chief was hit by 50 calibre and 37 mm ground fire on its approach to the LZ. Housh and Wallace jumped from the aircraft from an altitude of 50-100 feet above the jungle canopy. The others were rescued. No trace of Housh and Wallace was ever found. They were declared Missing In Action.
The CH54 "Flying Crane" on which Arthur Lord was aircraft commander, Charles Millard pilot, Arthur J. Lord co-pilot, Michael Werdehoff flight engineer, and Philip Shafer crew chief was carrying a bulldozer into the recently re-secured LZ Tiger when the aircraft was hit and crashed. All the crew were classified Missing In Action.
Thorough searches for the 3 helicopters were not immediately possible because of the enemy situation. A refugee later reported that he had found the wreckage of two U.S. helicopters, one with 3 sets of skeletal remains, in Quang Tri Province. The U.S. Army believes this could correlate with any of the three helicopters lost on April 19, 1968, but no firm evidence has been secured that would reveal the fate of the nine missing servicemen.
Some 250,000 interviews and "millions of documents" have been analyzed relating to Americans who may still be alive, captive, in Southeast Asia. Many experts believe there are hundreds of men still alive, waiting fortheir country to rescue them. Whether any of the nine missing from near LZ Tiger is among them is unknown, but it is clearly past time for us to bring our men home.
Information from No-Quarter:
--- General / Personal ---
Last name: BLODGETT First name: DOUGLAS RANDOLPH Home of Record (official): ALEXANDRIA State (official): VA Date of Birth: Thursday, May 1, 1947 Sex: Male Race: Caucasian Marital Status: Single
--- Military ---
Branch: Army Rank: SSG Serial Number: 228687700 Component: Regular Pay grade: E6 MOS (Military Occupational Specialty code): Unknown/Not reported Major Organization: 1st Aviation Bde
--- Action ---
Start of Tour: Friday, April 19, 1968 Date of Casualty: Sunday, November 19, 1978 Age at time of loss: 31 Casualty type: (A3) Hostile, died while missing Reason: Air loss - Crashed on land (Crew member - Helicopter) Country: South VietNam Province: Quang Tri The Wall: Panel 50E - Row 044
The Wall Memorial 228th Assault Support Helecopter Battalion - 1st Cavalry Division
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