2023 Gander Memorial Ceremony

Photo By Spc. Brianna Badder | Don Marsh, Hopkinsville city council member, and Jerry Gilliam, Hopkinsville judge executive, present a wreath at the Gander Memorial during a ceremony at Fort Campbell, Ky, Dec 12, 2023. The annual Gander Memorial Ceremony honors the 248 Soldiers who were killed in a flight that crashed on December 12, 1985, in Gander, Newfoundland, Canada. (U.S. Army photos by Spc. Brianna Badder)  

KY, UNITED STATES

12.12.2023

Story by Spc. Brianna Badder 

101st Airborne Division (Air Assault)

Story by Spc. Brianna Badder, 40th Public Affairs Detachment
FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. — The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), held an annual memorial ceremony which honored the memory of the 248 Soldiers with the 3rd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) who lost their lives in a plane crash on December 12, 1985, at Fort Campbell, Ky., Dec. 12, 2023.
The Soldiers involved in the crash were returning from a six-month peacekeeping mission in Sinai, Egypt, as part of the Multinational Force and Observers mission.
Shortly after a fuel stop in Gander, Newfoundland, Canada, the plane crashed, killing the 248 Soldiers and 8 crew members aboard.
Each year since the crash, the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) holds a memorial ceremony on December 12 to honor the passengers who lost their lives. A ceremony is also held at the Gander Memorial Park in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. This year’s ceremony marks the 38th year since the crash.
Each of the 248 fallen Soldiers has a sugar maple tree planted in their honor around the site of the memorial on Fort Campbell. During today’s ceremony, Soldiers from 2nd Brigade honored those killed in the crash by standing in front of each tree during the ceremony.
To conclude the ceremony, Col. James Stultz, commander of 2nd Brigade Combat Team “Strike” and Chief Warrant Officer 4 Mickael Cruz-Sanchez, an electronic systems maintenance warrant officer with 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, placed a wreath at the memorial, followed by the ceremonial firing and the sounding of Taps.
Cruz says that he has attended the ceremony since he became stationed at Fort Campbell in 2005. His father, Staff Sgt. Francisco Cruz Salgado was one of the Soldiers killed in the crash.
He said that his father’s legacy is what inspired him to pursue a career in the military and that he hopes to honor his father’s memory with his own career.
“It’s an honor to be able to fulfill something that he started,” he said. “It is a privilege for me.”
He said that it is crucial to honor and remember his father, along with the rest of the fallen Soldiers, to keep their memory alive. He thinks that the annual ceremony is one of the most important parts of doing so.
“You should never forget those who came before us; and all of their accomplishments in and out of uniform,” said Cruz. “It is important to continue their legacy.”

• Date Taken: 12.12.2023
• Date Posted: 12.14.2023 17:26
• Story ID: 459856
• Location: KY, US