Academy graduate dies after June helicopter crash in Afghanistan
July 06, 2010 4:41 PM
LANCE BENZEL
THE GAZETTE
An Air Force Academy graduate died Friday of injuries he suffered in a June 9 helicopter crash in southeastern Afghanistan, the academy said this afternoon.
Capt. David Wisniewski, 31, was an HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter pilot assigned to the 66th Rescue Squadron at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev.
He died at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md, nearly a month after a crash that killed four other airmen and wounded two others.
The Moville, Iowa man was a 2002 graduate of the Air Force Academy.
As a pilot, he logged more than 1,500 flight hours, flew 289 combat hours and is credited with saving numerous lives, an academy spokesman said in a written statement.
"In one day, Dave was key in saving 40 people during the largest single mass casualty mission in Regional Command South," Lt. Col. Thomas Dorl, commander of the 66th Rescue Squadron, was quoted as saying. "This was no small feat as he braved enemy action and flew into a hot landing zone three times to save people."
Wisniewski is the 13th Air Force Academy graduate killed in either Iraq or Afghanistan.
A memorial service is being planned at Nellis Air Force Base.
Read more: http://www.gazette.com/articles/academy-101221-force-air.html#ixzz0t0oF2NMb
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July 3, 2010
Air Force Captain With Eastern Iowa Ties Dies
A website that updated people on the injuries and recovery of U.S. Air Force Captain David Wisniewski now states he died Friday evening.
Wisniewski, 31, is the son of Iowa City Regina Activities Director Chet Wisniewski. Last month, Wisniewski was piloting a helicopter in Afghanistan when it was shot down. He was flown stateside to Bethesda Naval Hospital after receiving initial care for head injuries in Germany.
The Iowa City Regina community also announced Captain Wisniewski�??s passing on Saturday.
Captain Wisniewski graduated from Woodbury Central High School in Moville before enterting the Air Force. The website also had posts and status updates on Wisniewski�??s condition written by his fiancee as they were to get married this September.
The site says funeral arrangements are pending.
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Jul. 03, 2010
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal
Nellis airman dies from wounds in June 9 crash in Afghanistan
Rescue attempt in Afghanistan left five killed, two injured
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
An airman from Nellis Air Force Base died Friday from injuries suffered when his helicopter was shot down during a rescue mission last month in southÂeastern Afghanistan.
Capt. David A. Wisniewski, 31, of Moville, Iowa, died at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.
He was the fifth casualty of the June 9 crash of an HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter in Helmand province during an attempt to rescue wounded NATO soldiers.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation, Air Force officials said Saturday.
Last month, Lt. Col. Joseph T. Breasseale, a NATO spokesman, said the airmen died "after their helicopter was brought down by hostile fire."
At that time, the Taliban claimed responsibility, saying militants hit the rescue helicopter with two rockets.
A memorial service for Wisniewski, a helicopter pilot assigned to the 66th Rescue Squadron at Nellis, will be held at Nellis at a date that will be announced later, officials said.
Two other Nellis airmen were killed in the crash: 1st Lt. Joel C. Gentz, 25, of Grass Lake, Mich., and Staff Sgt. David C. Smith, 26, of Eight Mile, Ala.
Also killed were Tech Sgt. Michael P. Flores, 31, of San Antonio and Senior Airman Benjamin D. White, 24, of Erwin, Tenn. Both were assigned to the 48th Rescue Squadron at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona.
Two other airmen from the 66th Rescue Squadron were injured in the crash. Capt. Anthony Simone, a helicopter pilot, and Tech. Sgt. Christopher Aguilera, an aerial gunner, are recovering at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, according to Air Force officials.
Wisniewski's death brings to 70 the number of U.S. military personnel with ties to Nevada who have died in the nation's wars overseas since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.
He was the fourth Nevada armed forces member killed in Afghanistan in less than a month.
Spc. Matthew R. Hennigan, 20, of Las Vegas, died Wednesday from machine-gun bullet wounds he suffered during a firefight in Tangi Valley, 40 miles south of Kabul.
According to the Army, Hennigan was a paratrooper assigned to the 173rd Special Troops Battalion, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Bamberg, Germany.
Capt. David A. Wisniewski
Born: June 27, 1979
Died: July 02, 2010
Services:Funeral Mass of the Resurrection for Capt. David A. Wisniewski, 31, son of Chet and Beverly Wisniewski of Iowa City, will be celebrated at 10 am Saturday, July 24th at St. Patrickâ??s Catholic Church with the Very Rev Rudolph Juarez officiating. Committal Services with Military Honors will be held at 11 am Monday, August 23rd at Arlington National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers the Capt. David Wisniewski Memorial Fund has been established at Hills Bank and Trust, 1401 S. Gilbert St, Iowa City, IA 52240.
Visitation:Visitation will be at St. Patrickâ??s on Friday, July 23rd from 4 to 8pm with a Parish Vigil Service to be held at 7:30pm.
David died July 2, 2010 at the Bethesda Naval Hospital from injuries he sustained on June 9th in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan.
Comments/Citation
A funeral Mass of the Resurrection for Capt. David A. Wisniewski, 31, son of Chet and Beverly Wisniewski of Iowa City, will be celebrated Saturday, July 24 at 10 a.m. at St. Patrick's Catholic Church with the Very Rev. Rudolph Juarez officiating. Visitation will be at St. Patrick's Friday, July 23 from 4 to 8 p.m. with a parish vigil service to be held at 7:30 p.m. Committal services with military honors will be held Monday, Aug. 23 at 11 a.m. at Arlington National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers the Capt. David Wisniewski Memorial Fund has been established at Hills Bank and Trust, 1401 S. Gilbert St., Iowa City, IA 52240. Arrangements are with Lensing Funeral and Cremation Service, Iowa City.
David was born June 27, 1979 in Ft. Dodge, IA. He was a graduate of Woodbury Central High School in Moville where he was academically minded and a gifted athlete. David was a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy. In December 2008 he completed training at the Advanced Weapons School at Nellis Air Force Base.
David was the pilot of a U.S. Air Force Black Hawk helicopter and had four deployments to Iraq and three to Afghanistan. He received the Purple Heart on June 23, 2010. This last tour in Afghanistan he rescued 240 soldiers. He died July 2, 2010 at the Bethesda Naval Hospital from injuries he sustained on June 9th in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan. Following this tour David had been selected to become an instructor at the Advanced Weapons School.
David made a difference in the lives of people he had touched.
He is survived by his parents Chet and Beverly of Iowa City and two brothers, Craig (Allison) Wisniewski of Osceola and Matthew Wisniewski of Iowa City; his fiancé, Melissa Sandberg of Las Vegas; his niece, Hannah and nephew, Cael; aunts and uncles, Peggy Koenigsman of Omaha, NE, Debbie Huntley of Richmond, WV, Bruce (Sherry) Koenigsman of Lincoln, NE, Christine (Rick) Pracha of Houston, TX and Jeff (Maureen) Koenigsman of Parker, TX; and numerous cousins.
David was preceded in death by his brother, Francis Chester and his grandparents, Francis and JoAnn Koenigsman and Chester and Mary Wisniewski and his aunt Mary Ann Joaquin.
Online condolences may be sent to www.lensingfuneral.co
©The Ogden Reporter 2010
Sources:
http://memwall.usafalibrary.com/files/5412_FilePath.pdf
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=54433090
http://rgprucha.com/dave/index.htm
http://arlingtoncemetery.net/dawisniewski.htm
http://thefallen.militarytimes.com/air-force-capt-david-a-wisniewski/4696985
http://www.nellis.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123259444
http://www.nellis.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123320906
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