The Wall › Panel 1W › Delaware › Gerald Francis Ayres
GERALD FRANCIS AYRES
Major · U.S. Air Force
February 23, 1939 – June 18, 1972
Service recordGerald Francis Ayres, of New Castle, Delaware, served as a Major in the U.S. Air Force. He died on June 18, 1972, in Thua Thien Province, South Vietnam, at age 33. His name is inscribed on Panel 1W, Line 44 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 1W · Line 44
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. Air Force
- Rank
- Major (MAJ)
- Service
- Reserve / National Guard
- Born
- February 23, 1939
- Home of record
- New Castle, Delaware (New Castle County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- June 18, 1972
- Age
- 33
- Province
- Thua Thien
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Unknown
Context · from the records
What was happening
14 names on the Wall carry the date June 18, 1972; 12 of them were lost in Thừa Thiên Province. In June 1972, 88 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
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 44
- RICHARD MILTON COLE JRTechnical Sergeant · June 18, 1972
- MARK GILES DANIELSONCaptain · June 18, 1972
- PAUL FARIS GILBERTCaptain · June 18, 1972
- ROBERT HEERMAN HARRISONMajor · June 18, 1972
From New Castle
- GEORGE FRANCIS PERRY IIISergeant · May 15, 1967
- WILLIAM ALFRED POLLARDPrivate First Class · July 21, 1967
- PAUL F BRANYAN JRCorporal · December 10, 1967
- JEFFREY TYRONE CASSIDYSpecialist Four · March 10, 1969
- WILLIAM JOSEPH MURPHYSergeant · February 16, 1970
- FRANCIS XAVIER GAWORSKISpecialist Four · April 10, 1970
- JOSEPH STANLEY TIDWELLPrivate First Class · January 17, 1971
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.