Bio, Hendrix, Jerry W.

Name: Jerry Wayne Hendrix
Rank/Branch: E6/US Marine Corps
Unit: HMM 165, MAG 36, 1 MAW
Date of Birth: 27 December 1942
Home City of Record: Wichita KS
Date of Loss: 11 July 1972
Country of Loss: South Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 163433N 1072250E (YD345644)
Status (in 1973): Killed/Body Not Recovered
Category: 4
Acft/Vehicle/Ground: CH53D
Refno: 1999

Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project 15 March 1991 from one or more of
the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence
with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W.
NETWORK 2020.

SYNOPSIS: On the morning of July 11, 1972, the helicopter to which Hendrix
was assigned launched from the USS TRIPOLI to participate in combat
operations in support of operation LAM SON 72 (Phase II) in Vietnam.

LAM SON 719 had been a large offensive operation against NVA communications
lines in Laos in the region adjacent to the two northern provinces of South
Vietnam. The operation was a raid in which ARVN troops drove west from Khe
Sanh on Route 9, cut the Ho Chi Minh Trail, seized Tchepone, some 25 miles
away, and then returned to Vietnam. The ARVN provided and commanded the
ground forces, while U.S. Army and Air Force furnished aviation airlift and
supporting firepower.

Losses were heavy. The ARVN suffered some 9,000 casualties, almost 50% of
their force. U.S. forces incurred some 1,462 casualties. Aviation units lost
168 helicopters and another 618 were damaged. Fifty-five aircrewmen were
killed in action, 178 were wounded and 34 were missing in action. There were
19,360 known enemy casualties for the entire operation lasting until April
6, 1971.

Phase II of LAM SON included inserting South Vietnamese marines behind enemy
lines near communist-occupied Quang Tri City, Republic of Vietnam. This was
the mission of Hendrix' helicopter.

While approaching the drop zone, the helicopter was struck by a heat-seeking
SA-7 missile in the starboard engine. The aircraft immediately burst into
flames and crashlanded moments later. Several aboard received injuries and
were taken back to the TRIPOLI for treatment. The bodies of Hendrix and the
gunner, CPL Kenneth L. Crody, could not be recovered because of the intense
heat of the burning aircraft.

Crody and Hendrix are listed with honor among the missing because their
remains were not returned home. Witnesses believed they were both dead in
the aircraft. For many others of the missing, however, clear-cut answers
cannot be had. Many were alive and in radio contact with would-be rescuers
when they were last heard from. Others were photographed in captivity, only
to disappear.

Since the war ended, the Defense Department has received over 10,000 reports
relating to the men still unaccounted for in Southeast Asia, yet concludes
that no actionable evidence has been received that would indicate Americans
are still alive in Southeast Asia. A recent Senate investigation indicates
that most of these reports were dismissed without just cause, and that there
is every indication that Americans remained in captivity far after the war
ended, and may be alive today.

POW/MIAs - VIETNAM WAR: According to DoD, there are now 1,859 Americans
listed as missing and unaccounted for from the Vietnam War: 1,418 in
Vietnam, 378 in Laos, 55 in Cambodia and 8 in PRC territorial waters. Over
90% of all Americans missing from the Vietnam War were lost in Vietnam or in
areas of Laos and Cambodia under Hanoi's wartime control. Since the last
Newsletter, seven Americans have been announced as accounted for:

Warrant Officer 2nd Class Jack W. Brunson, USA, KIA/BNR, Laos, 5/31/71, RR
5/29/03
Major Ralph L. Carlock, USAF, KIA/BNR 3/4/67, LA, RR 10/26/02
CPL Kenneth L. Crody, USMC, KIA/BNR 7/11/72, SVN, RR 8/29/00
Mr. Charles Dean, Captured 9/10/74, LA, RR 11/26/03
SSGT Dennis W. Hammond, USMC, POW 2/8/68, DIC 1970, RR 1989
SSGT Jerry W. Hendrix, USMC, KIA/BNR 7/11/72, SVN, RR 8/29/00
Captain Raymond H. Hetrick, USAF, KIA/BNR 2/24/66, LA, RR 7/10/01

Jerry W. Hendrix,U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. and Kansas MIA lost July
11, 1972 in northern Vietnam near Quang Tri during Operation Lam Son 72
(phase II). The CH53D helicopter to which he was assigned was to drop
ARVN troops behind enemy lines near Quang Tri. The helicopter was hit by
a heat seeking SA-7 missile and crashed. His body and the body of Cpl
Kenneth L. Crody could not be recovered because of the intense heat of
the burning aircraft. His remains were recovered in 2000, and were
identified and accepted by the family in April of 2004. The remains will
be buried at Arlington National cemetary July 27 along with Cpl. Crody.
A memorial service will be held July 31, 2004 at Resthaven Mortuary ,
Wichita, Kansas at 10:00AM. The address is 11800 West Kellogg.

The Sea Stallion lifted off from the USS Tripoli on the morning of July 11,
1972. It was one of 34 Marine helicopters ordered to land 840 troops behind
enemy lines near Quang Tri City in Vietnam......

SSGT JERRY WAYNE HENDRIX

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Conflict
Service
Status
Date of Accounting

VIETNAM WAR
UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS
Accounted For
03/08/2004

On March 8, 2004, the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC, now DPAA) identified the remains of Staff Sergeant Jerry Wayne Hendrix, missing from the Vietnam War.

Staff Sergeant Hendrix entered the U.S. Marine Corps from Kansas and was a member of Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 165. On July 11, 1972, he was a passenger aboard a CH-53D Sea Stallion (tail number 156658) that took off from the USS Tripoli (LPH-10) on a troop insertion mission into territory near Quang Tri City, South Vietnam. During the mission, the aircraft was hit by an enemy missile, burst into flames, and crashed in Quang Tri Province, killing SSgt Hendrix and the others on board. His remains could not be recovered at the time. In April 1990, a joint team located the crash site in Quang Tri Province and later excavations recovered human remains and personal effects from relating to the incident. Modern forensic techniques were able to identify SSgt Hendrix among the remains.

Staff Sergeant Hendrix is memorialized on Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

If you are a family member of this serviceman, you may contact your casualty office representative to learn more about your service member.

SSgt JERRY WAYNE HENDRIX

Unit
Historical Country of Loss
South Vietnam
Current Country of Loss
VIETNAM
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