FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. (Dec. 17, 2015) -- On Dec. 12, 1985, then-Spec. 4 Robin Scott was awaiting the arrival of Arrow Air Flight 1285, scheduled to bring 248 Soldiers home following a 6-month peacekeeping mission to the Sinai Peninsula in the Middle East.
Among the Soldiers were his close friends, specialists Mark W. Ferguson and Cary T. Yeargan. The three had bonded around Scott's passion for hot rods, and they called themselves the "Three Amigos." Although Scott was on the flight manifest to come back on Flight 1285, he returned to Fort Campbell about a week early because his first wife was having complications with her pregnancy.
"I was standing outside the hanger waiting for the plane to come back," Scott said.
The news that the flight carrying the Soldiers -- all of whom were attached or assigned to 3rd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, "Strike and Kill," 2nd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division -- had crashed in Gander, Newfoundland, leaving no survivors hit Scott hard.
"It was a very tough day," he said, standing near the black granite monument at Task Force 3-502nd Memorial Tree Park looking at the name of Yeargan etched into the stone. "I was one of just a few who were left of my company [C Company, 3-502nd] after the crash. Ferguson and Yeargan -- we were the 'Three Amigos' and then it was over."
Shortly after the crash, Scott was on his way to Dover as part of a 502nd honor guard.
"I was privileged to take the first casket off the plane," he said.
The loss of his friends and comrades has affected Scott's life tremendously, for some 30 years he has carried with him the sorrow and guilt of not being on that ill-fated flight.
"This time of year, it plagues me," he said.
Since that time Scott has carried a TF 3-502 challenge coin with him, that was salvaged from the plane's wreckage -- it too bears the scars of the crash.
Last weekend was the first time that Scott had been to Fort Campbell since changing stations in early 1986. He had never seen the Fort Campbell memorial. Scott's wife Myra, who he calls "the last wife," encouraged him to attend the 30th-anniversary commemoration of the crash and accompanied him on the 10-hour drive from Ohio.
"He's been talking about it," she said. "I could see the signs that he had mustered up the courage to come."
Reconnecting
Specialist 4 Billy Goble worked in the motor pool, which was part of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3-502nd.
"Over half of the motor pool was lost in that crash," Goble said.
Among the friends that Goble lost was Spc. Cathleen M. Ziegler and he switched flights with Pfc. Kelly O. Graham, so he could get home in time for Christmas.
Goble, like many of his comrades, has struggled for the past 30 years haunted by overwhelming feelings of guilt and sadness -- not understanding why he felt the way he did.
"It was always around this time of year," he said.
Although the journey has not been easy for Goble, he has realized that through talking to other people affected by the crash they all share a common bond. A few years ago he reached out to the parents of Ziegler and visited them at their home. While there he saw a photograph of himself with Ziegler and a few others taken during a visit to Israel.
"I told them that we all had the same picture," Goble said. "It's crazy that a picture of me was hanging on their wall."
Last year was the first time he had been back to Fort Campbell since being reassigned after the crash -- a visit that brought about healing.
"Because of this I have gotten a lot of closure," he said. "Facebook and Amy [Gallo] have helped me get a better mental picture of this."
Healing gesture
Specialist 4 Jim Titus, a veteran of C Company, 3-502nd, arrived at the Nashville International Airport from Portland, Oregon, on Dec. 10. There he noticed a young Soldier whose uniform was void of insignia, and he asked him if he was headed to Fort Campbell. Turns out this Soldier, fresh out of Advanced Individual Training, was indeed headed to the installation just as Titus had been more than 30 years ago.
"I knew that [getting to Fort Campbell] would cost him money, so I offered him a ride," Titus said. "I grabbed his duffle bag and swung it over my shoulder. It looked like his dad was taking him to the Army."
Deep down Titus was happy for the company as this was his first trip back to Fort Campbell after completing his four-year Army stint here. He was returning to pay homage to his friend Spec. 4 Paul Bostwick and meet his sister, Julie Rutyna.
"He was one of the first friends I made after I got here out of basic," Titus said. Originally, Bostwick was to return to Fort Campbell on an earlier flight with Titus but was switched to Flight 1285.
"The last thing he said to me was 'I wish I were going with you guys'," Titus said. "This all seems like yesterday and a lifetime ago all at the same time."
He too was given one of the salvaged TF 3-502 challenge coins and has carried it with him for 30 years, until the evening of Dec. 10 when he met Bostwick's sister.
"It was the only irreplaceable thing that I had," he said.
Sometime after connecting with Rutyna on Facebook, Titus decided that the rightful owner of his irreplaceable coin was Bostwick's sister.
"Last night I gave it to her," Titus said. "It's symbolic; I'm lifting the burden off. Survivor's guilt is a tough thing."
Knowing how important these coins are to the veterans, Rutyna, at first, did not want to accept Titus' heartfelt gesture.
"He gave me a piece of himself in remembrance of my brother," she said with a tearful smile.
Saturday after the memorial ceremony, Titus and Sgt. Ray Williams, also a veteran of C Company 3-502nd, slowly walked to the tree that bears the name of Bostwick.
"This has been an amazing experience," Williams said, of his first time back at Fort Campbell since being reassigned. "I went through hell for the last 30 years not knowing that anyone felt the way I did. I hate to see anyone suffering like this."
Williams' journey through life has been a tumultuous one since the crash. To deal with his feelings of guilt, he started to drink.
"I would drink three or four beers before [physical training]," he said.
After being reassigned to California, Williams turned to drugs, which lead to the end of his 10-year Army career.
"I hated the Army; I threw away all of my awards and medals, everything. I did not care," he said.
Through therapy and finding veterans and Families who share his sorrow on Facebook, Williams has found solace. And coming from Las Vegas to attend the 30th-anniversary commemoration "has been very therapeutic," he said.
While looking down at the marker that reads "SP4 Paul J. Bostwick," Williams remembers his friend fondly.
"Paul was full of life and full of laughs," he said with a smile. "He was a cool person."
Legacy of a Soldier
Little 3-month-old Richard Sydney Nichols-Redman Jr. was the youngest member of the "Strike and Kill" Family to attend the weekend's events that included a 2nd Brigade Combat Team Open House and Social on Friday, and the memorial ceremony at the park on Saturday.
The baby, named after his late grandfather Staff Sgt. Richard. S. Nichols is the son of Charles Edward Nichols-Redman, or Chip, who was only 3 when his father died.
"I always figured that I would name my firstborn son after my dad," Nichols-Redman said.
This gesture touched Nichols' widow, Amy Gallo, deeply.
"He named him after Rick, isn't that awesome," she said of her son.
Nichols-Redman said that he has attended all but one of the memorial ceremonies in the past 30 years, and this year traveled from Indiana with his wife, Michelle, almost 3-year-old daughter, Rebecca Ann, and 9-year-old step-son, Matthew.
"Major [Ireka] Sanders did a great job. I liked the way everything was set up. It was more Family-friendly [than past events], I thought," Nichols-Redman said.
Gallo also credits Sanders with the success of the events surrounding the commemoration of 30th anniversary of the crash.
"She is amazing," said Gallo, who was part of the committee working on the weekend's events. "Ireka, she listened to the widows and made this an amazing event. She worked so hard on this. This woman took us to heart and did all of this for us."
One of the many details that stood out for Gallo was that 248 Soldiers from 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, matched with the corresponding rank of the Soldiers who perished in the Gander crash, were on hand to personally meet with surviving Families and friends.
"These 248 Soldiers have been great. I cannot say enough about these Soldiers; they put themselves out for us on a Friday and a Saturday," Gallo said. "And when I say thank you, they all just say 'It's an honor.' They have been so amazing."
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Former Soldiers, Courier journalists remember Gander victim
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In memoriam: Families, friends, veterans gather to honor Gander fallen
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