The Wall › Panel 1W › Illinois › Richard Dennis Wiley
RICHARD DENNIS WILEY
Specialist Four · U.S. Army
July 12, 1951 – June 12, 1972
Service recordRichard Dennis Wiley, of Decatur, Illinois, served as a Specialist Four in the U.S. Army. He died on June 12, 1972, in Thua Thien Province, South Vietnam, at age 20. His name is inscribed on Panel 1W, Line 41 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 1W · Line 41
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 Four (SP4)
- Service
- Regular
- Occupation
- Aircraft Maintenance Apprentice (67A)
- Unit (as recorded)
- 1 AVN BDE
- Born
- July 12, 1951
- Home of record
- Decatur, Illinois (Macon County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- June 12, 1972
- Age
- 20
- Province
- Thua Thien
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Unknown
- Remains
- Not recovered as of the 2008 DoD record
Context · from the records
What was happening
Three names on the Wall carry the date June 12, 1972; he was the only one lost in Thừa Thiên Province that day. In June 1972, 88 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The 1st Aviation Brigade, his unit in the record, lost 13 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.
His remains had not been recovered when the 2008 record was compiled. The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency continues to search for Americans still missing from the war; families can find case information through dpaa.mil.
Read the history
On the Wall
Also on Panel 1W, Line 41
- ROGER EUGENE WILSONMajor · June 11, 1972
- ROBIN RAY YEAKLEYSpecialist Four · June 11, 1972
- MAURICE CLARKStaff Sergeant · June 12, 1972
- SAMUEL HERBERT POWELLFirst Lieutenant · June 12, 1972
From Decatur
- ROGER HUGH MULLINSLieutenant Commander · February 17, 1960
- HERBERT J DEXTERMajor · September 18, 1965
- JAMES DARRELL WHITE JRPrivate First Class · January 29, 1966
- WILLIAM PATRICK FORANLance Corporal · March 1, 1966
- RONALD THOMAS SHELTONCaptain · April 10, 1966
- BRYAN B STOCKWELLPrivate First Class · September 20, 1966
- JOHN RUSSELL SMITHLance Corporal · October 5, 1966
- CARL GENE SMITHSpecialist Four · February 13, 1967
- STEPHEN RAY BANGERTLance Corporal · March 2, 1967
- JAMES THOMAS BRADSHAWPrivate First Class · March 18, 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.