This Military Service Page was created/owned by
Sgt Duane Kimbrow (Skip)
to remember
Coates, Harry Jay, Jr., Maj.
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Casualty Info
Home Town Yankton, SD
Last Address Da Nang AB, RVN
Casualty Date Nov 04, 1969
Cause KIA-Killed in Action
Reason Air Loss, Crash - Land
Location Quang Ngai (Vietnam)
Conflict Vietnam War
Location of Interment Arlington National Cemetery (VLM) - Arlington, Virginia
Major Coates was trained as a pilot at Webb Air Force Base in Big Spring, Texas. After additional training, Coates served as a Flight Commander and instructing in jet trainers for an Air Refueling Squadron in Shreveport, Louisiana. In 1965, he served as an Air Attache with the American Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon.
He began his tour in Vietnam 28 September 1969 from Barksdale Air Force Base in Shreveport, Louisiana.
Major Coates, who had 16 years of service and served 36 days in combat, was a Helix Forward Air Controller assigned to the 20th Tactical Air Support Squadron at Da Nang. He was flying OV-10A (S/N 67-14676) with Captain Charles L. Karr while supporting the Americal Division. They were marking the position of a Viet Cong unit about 10 miles north of Quang Ngai when they failed to pull out of the dive and crashed close to the target.
He was interred in Arlington National Cemetery, Section 13 Site 16428.
He left a wife and a son and daughter.
Notes: An alumnus of the University of Minnesota, outstanding football player.