The Wall › Panel 4W › Arizona › Ronald Lester Babcock
RONALD LESTER BABCOCK
First Lieutenant · U.S. Army
October 8, 1945 – February 27, 1971
Service recordRonald Lester Babcock, of Tucson, Arizona, served as a First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He died on February 27, 1971, in Laos, at age 25. His name is inscribed on Panel 4W, Line 8 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 4W · Line 8
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
- First Lieutenant (1LT)
- Service
- Reserve / National Guard
- Occupation
- Air Observation Pilot (1981)
- Unit (as recorded)
- 1 AVN BDE
- Born
- October 8, 1945
- Home of record
- Tucson, Arizona (Pima County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- February 27, 1971
- Age
- 25
- Country
- Laos
- 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
14 names on the Wall carry the date February 27, 1971. In February 1971, 387 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The 1st Aviation Brigade, his unit in the record, lost 23 of its members that month.
He died in Laos while Operation Lam Son 719 was under way. In Lam Son 719 (February–March 1971), South Vietnamese troops drove into Laos to cut the Ho Chi Minh Trail, carried and supported by U.S. helicopters and aircraft; more than 100 U.S. helicopters were lost.
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
Also on Panel 4W, Line 8
- SHERMAN RAY TAYLORSpecialist Four · February 26, 1971
- DALE ALLEN WALKERPetty Officer Third Class · February 26, 1971
- LARRY GENE LEWISLieutenant · February 27, 1971
- FRANCISCO QUINTANILLA JRCorporal · February 27, 1971
Same unit, same day
- FRED MOONEYSergeant First Class · Panel 4W, Line 10
- KEVIN GARNER THORNESpecialist Four · Panel 4W, Line 10
From Tucson
- JAMES ATLEE WHEELERCaptain · April 18, 1965
- VICTOR BRUCE KELLEYCaptain · April 28, 1965
- JOHN PATRICK BURNSPrivate First Class · July 7, 1965
- LAWRENCE WILLIAM JORDANLance Corporal · July 30, 1965
- MAX DUANE LUKENBACHCommander · December 22, 1965
- BOB CLARENCE HUNT JRSpecialist Four · January 29, 1966
- CLYDE L NORVELLE JRWarrant Officer 1 · March 30, 1966
- JAMES RILEY HOWELLCorporal · May 12, 1966
- DAVID WILLIAM JOHNSTONPrivate First Class · May 29, 1966
- WARREN ORISON KNEPPER JRSergeant · June 24, 1966
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.