MURRIETTA FRANK A

Narrative

The main rotor was shot off the aircraft by AAA fire from 1,500 feet AGL. (Operations log says tail rotor) It was the command and control ship at the time. All souls on board perished when the rotorless aircraft hit the ground and exploded. A big ball of fire from air observation by other members of C/227. All bodies were recovered and identified later that day. All burned up. from CW4 Bill Terry, July 1996. Loren McAnally was an eye witness at the time and said that it was actually the tail rotor that was shot off by AA fire, and that the aircraft subsequently got into severe mast bumping, leading to the loss of the main rotor.