Remember 12 December!

Every year, as the holiday season, really, starts getting into swing of things I’m filled with thoughts of family and friends, Christmas cards and emails are received and sent, gifts purchased or made, it’s just a great time… but also a time of sad remembrance.

It was on 12 December that the plane carrying 248 soldiers crashed, most of them from the 101st Airborne Division’s 3rd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment including 2 Finance Soldiers assigned to the 101^st Finance Office; CPT Luis Avillan, from San Juan, PR and Sergeant Michael Murray, from Washington, IN. All 248 soldiers and the plane’s 8 civilian crew members were killed. there were no survivors. This year marks 31 years since the tragedy.

On 11 December 1985, Arrow Air Flight MF1285R, a Douglas DC-8-63, departed Cairo, Egypt at 2035 Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) on an international charter flight to Fort Campbell, Kentucky via Cologne, Germany, and Gander, Newfoundland. The flight was the return portion of the second in a series of three planned troop rotation flights originating from McChord Air Force Base, Washington and ending at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. The flight had been chartered by the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) to transport troops, their personal effects, and some military equipment from peacekeeping duties in the Sinai Desert.

The flight arrived at Gander at 0904. Passengers were deplaned, the aircraft was refueled, trash and waste water were removed, and catering supplies were boarded. The passengers then re-boarded. Following engine start-up, the aircraft taxied to runway 22 for departure. Take-off on runway 22 was begun at 1015. The aircraft was observed to proceed down the runway and rotate in the vicinity of taxiway "A". Witnesses to the take-off reported that the aircraft gained little altitude after rotation and began to descend. Several witnesses, who were travelling on the Trans-Canada Highway approximately 900 feet beyond the departure end of runway 22, testified that the aircraft crossed the highway, which is at a lower elevation than the runway, at a very low altitude.

The accident occurred at 1016 during the hours of darkness, the aircraft was destroyed by impact forces and a severe fuel-fed fire. All 256 occupants on board sustained fatal injuries. Canadian aviation officials said the cause of the crash was ice on the wings. 

The Multinational Peacekeeping Force and Observers (MFO) on Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula had troops from the United States, Fiji, Colombia, Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Italy, Uruguay, France and England. They were under the command of military officers from Norway.

The MFO was created as a peacekeeping force to police the disengagement of Israeli and Egyptian troops under the two nations’ 1979 peace treaty, the only such treaty between Israel and an Arab country.

This was the third of four contingents returning from the Sinai mission after a 6-month deployment. About 970 Soldiers were in the task force. The rotational force had been part of the Multinational Peacekeeping Force and Observers since July.

The finance contingent of the task force consisted of three members and their mission was to provide deployed soldiers with face-to-face finance support including, but not limited to, resolving pay inquiries, collecting and forwarding pay changes, check cashing and disbursing a special (written into treaty requirements; $3.50 a deployed day) monthly “cash” per diem payment to the soldiers. Often this pay support required member(s) of the Finance Team to travel to remote Observation Posts/Check Points located through Sinai Peninsula. This was CPT Avillan’s 2^nd deployment in support of the MFO mission. Remember this was “ole skool” when finance was very hands on in fulfilling the creed of “Support and Serve”

At this point I apologize, not sure why, old age? But for the life of me I cannot recall the 3^rd member of the team and I feel awful. I can’t imagine what this soldier goes through this time of year and every day. My thoughts and prayers go with him.

Gone, but not forgotten! Thanks to John and Mary Kay Null, while visiting Ft Campbell earlier this year, for questioning the whereabouts of a memorial established in 1986. They were both assigned to the 101^st Finance Office at the time of the tragedy. This led to Larry “Airborne” Elsom getting the finance folks at Ft. Campbell and others energized, resulting in the recent announcement of a re-dedication, hopefully in April 2017 at Ft Campbell. Details to be announced as they become known.

So many people to Thank, so many stories of joy and sadness to be shared.