Thomas E Mortice III
Thomas E Mortice III
U.S. Army
Sergeant
Biography:
Thomas E. Mortice III grew up in Des Moines and was a 1963 graduate of North High School. As a young man he participated in Boy Scouts, becoming an Eagle Scout, and enjoyed his 1958 Corvette. Mortice graduated from Grandview College in Des Moines and began working at United Electronics Institute in West Des Moines. He was drafted by the Army and completed his training at Fort Campbell, KY. SGT Mortice was a Subsistence Supply Specialist serving with the Headquarters and Headquarters Company of the 9th Infantry Division when he was deployed to Vietnam in October 1967. He was stationed at Camp Bearcat in the Bien Hoa Province, South Vietnam. Ten months into SGT Mortice’s twelve month tour he was killed in a helicopter accident. On August 12, 1968 the UH-1D Huey Helicopter he was aboard experienced a mechanical failure with its tail rotor. The chopper crashed into a rice paddy. The two pilots were trapped in the wreckage and the passenger compartment caught fire. All ten soldiers onboard were killed including SGT Mortice. The 24-year-old was killed from burns sustained during the crash. His body was returned to Iowa and buried at the Glendale Cemetery in Des Moines.
County:
Polk
City of Entry | Des Moines | |
Conflict/Time Period | Vietnam War | Service Location | Organization(s) | Separation Status | Killed In Action (KIA) | Specialty/Rate | Specific Jobs |