The Last Flight of a Hero

I know many people read BLACKFIVE...so I apologize if you've already seen this. I found this article so moving that I had to post the link.

For some reason my allergies are acting up...I guess its the dust in the air.

Jared Landaker was born in Madeira, California, in 1981. Jared's birth was something of a miracle and he developed into a strong and smart young man. Jared was studying physics as a college student on September 11, 2001. The events that day caused Jared to finish his Physics degree and head to Quantico, Virginia, to become a Marine Officer.

He received orders for flight school, went to P-cola and graduated in the top of his class. Jared wanted to be a CH-46 pilot.

Soon Landaker was in Iraq. He wrote his family and told them that he had the best job in the world - transporting wounded Marines. The 25 year old First Lieutenant was piloting a CH-46, transporting a wounded Marine, on February 7th, when they were hit by a surface to air missile. The crew chief communicated that the fuselage was on fire. The bird then listed to one side, spun around and around, and then crashed to the ground exploding in flames. All Marines on board were killed.

But that wasn't Lieutenant Landaker's last flight.

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