The Wall › Panel 1W › Texas › Charles William Gaches
CHARLES WILLIAM GACHES
Specialist Five · U.S. Army
February 28, 1949 – May 24, 1972
Service recordCharles William Gaches, of Seguin, Texas, served as a Specialist Five in the U.S. Army. He died on May 24, 1972, in Thua Thien Province, South Vietnam, at age 23. His name is inscribed on Panel 1W, Line 74 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 1W · Line 74
Names are inscribed in the order of loss, starting at Panel 1E at the apex and ending at Panel 1W. At the Memorial, find the panel number at the base and count down from the top line.
Remember
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Service
- Branch
- U.S. Army
- Rank
- Specialist Five (SP5)
- Service
- Regular
- Occupation
- Medium Helicopter Repairer (67U)
- Unit (as recorded)
- 1 AVN BDE
- Born
- February 28, 1949
- Home of record
- Seguin, Texas (Guadalupe County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- May 24, 1972
- Age
- 23
- Province
- Thua Thien
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Helicopter Crash — crew
Context · from the records
What was happening
12 names on the Wall carry the date May 24, 1972; nine of them were lost in Thừa Thiên Province. In May 1972, 113 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The 1st Aviation Brigade, his unit in the record, lost 22 of its members that month.
He died in Thừa Thiên Province while the Easter Offensive was under way. On 30 March 1972, North Vietnam launched its largest offensive since 1968, attacking across the DMZ, toward An Lộc and into the Central Highlands. By then few U.S. ground troops remained; American advisers and air power fought alongside the South Vietnamese.
Also on Panel 1W, Line 74
- MICHAEL STEPHEN TUROSEFirst Lieutenant · September 17, 1972
- THOMAS ONEAL ZORN JRCaptain · September 17, 1972
- ROGER WILLIAM CARROLL JRMajor · September 21, 1972
- DWIGHT WILLIAM COOKFirst Lieutenant · September 21, 1972
- TIMOTHY JAMES SWEENEYPrivate First Class · September 23, 1972
Same unit, same day
- JAMES ARTHUR BAREFIELDWarrant Officer 1 · Panel 1W, Line 29
- DAVID ALAN BAUSCHSpecialist Four · Panel 1W, Line 29
- DAVID LEE BROOKS JRPrivate First Class · Panel 1W, Line 30
- DAN CHRISTIE KINGMAN JRMajor · Panel 1W, Line 30
- BRUCE EUGENE KLINEFirst Lieutenant · Panel 1W, Line 30
- TIMOTHY JAMES MONKELBAANSpecialist Four · Panel 1W, Line 31
- FRANK ALLEN NEWMANSpecialist Six · Panel 1W, Line 31
- HARRY LINDSAY THAINCaptain · Panel 1W, Line 31
From Seguin
- FELIPE DURAN CAMARILLOStaff Sergeant · April 3, 1968
- JOSE BALLENTINE CAMPOSFireman · January 14, 1969
- PEDRO ACEVEDO GONZALEZSpecialist Four · January 21, 1970
Source. U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Casualty Analysis System, Vietnam Conflict Extract Data File (as of April 29, 2008), Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Record Group 330, National Archives (NAID 2240992). Panel and line as recorded in that file. This page presents the official record and its historical context; no biography has been written for him yet. See something wrong? Report a correction.