The Wall › Panel 1W › New York › Lester Bracey
LESTER BRACEY
Staff Sergeant · U.S. Air Force
July 9, 1951 – May 3, 1972
Service recordLester Bracey, of Yonkers, New York, served as a Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Air Force. He died on May 3, 1972, in Binh Dinh Province, South Vietnam, at age 20. His name is inscribed on Panel 1W, Line 13 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 1W · Line 13
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.
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Service
- Branch
- U.S. Air Force
- Rank
- Staff Sergeant (SSGT)
- Service
- Regular
- Unit (as recorded)
- 13 AF
- Born
- July 9, 1951
- Home of record
- Yonkers, New York (Westchester County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- May 3, 1972
- Age
- 20
- Province
- Binh Dinh
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Unknown
Context · from the records
What was happening
Eight names on the Wall carry the date May 3, 1972; he was the only one lost in Bình Định Province that day. In May 1972, 113 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The unit recorded as “13 AF”, his unit in the record, lost 2 of its members that month.
He died in Bình Định 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 13
- ALEXANDER MCIVERCaptain · May 3, 1972
- FREDDIE LEON SLATERStaff Sergeant · May 3, 1972
- DON LEE UNGERCaptain · May 3, 1972
- DAVID BERYL WILLIAMSMajor · May 3, 1972
Same unit, same day
- THOMAS CARL WIDERQUISTFirst Lieutenant · Panel 1W, Line 12
From Yonkers
- JOHN RICHARD TURNERLance Corporal · March 20, 1966
- FRANCIS MICHAEL BOYLESecond Lieutenant · March 22, 1966
- MARTIN DANIEL REILLYCaptain · May 17, 1966
- FRANZ XAVIER WALLNERStaff Sergeant · June 11, 1966
- ROBERT FRANCIS GEARY JRPrivate First Class · July 23, 1966
- ARTHUR CARL ALTERWISHERPrivate First Class · September 21, 1966
- WILLIAM BANFIELD DORSEYCorporal · November 20, 1966
- JOSEPH A ARIMENTOPrivate First Class · November 23, 1966
- RICHARD FREDERICK HENRICHPrivate First Class · May 23, 1967
- THOMAS OSBORN CLARKPetty Officer Third Class · July 21, 1967
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.